Bonds Forged Early On
by AURyuichi-san
Summary: What if that day when Naruto saw Sasuke at the Dock, he did more than walk by? What if Naruto had sat next to Sasuke that day? How would this change the two of them if they had become friends early on? How would things change? No pairings yet, please r & r
1. Ch 1 The Bond Formed

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Naruto nor am I get paid for this (tch...)

AN: This will include a more Minato like Naruto with some Kushina like tendencies. Mostly he'll be more intelligent and mature but still likes to pull pranks and be on the energetic side.

The rating will change over time when I add more bloody and/or lemony scenes and the genres might change as well...

Pairings are undecided but could go either hetero or homosexual in nature and there is little to no chance of there being harems. Maybe one person with two mates/lovers but that would be it, _maybe._ I'm not worrying about it until the story develops more, but I'm open to and appreciate opinions, they may or may not have sway in my decision. Seriously though, _NO big harems. PERIOD._

* * *

A blond haired, cerulean eyed boy was simply making his way back to his apartment, strolling through the streets and ignoring the glares of the few villagers that were making their way home as the sun dropped. The boy did not like calling the small, poorly kept room he had a 'home', but it was one of the few things he could claim as his own.

As he continued along the river, the only road he knew that was not often used by most villagers, he noticed another boy sitting by the river on the docks. The blond stopped and stared at the curled up figure, taking in the black high collared short sleeve shirt and grey shorts, white wrappings covering his shins and going into black shinobi sandals. The most prominent feature of his clothes being the red and white Uchiha clan symbol emblazoned on the back of his shirt, his coal black hair fashioned in a way that reminded the blond of a cockatoo that added credence to what clan he was from. After eyeing his own scruffy white t-shirt and black capri shorts, the only symbol he wore being a red flame/swirl on the center of his shirt, he was about to walk on, never having had a good opinion of the arrogant Uchiha even after the massacre, but something about the other boy stopped him.

It was a sense of familiarity he got when looking at the other boy that stopped him, which at first confused the blond for what could he have in common with the heir to a prominent clan, and one revered and respected by the village no less?* After standing and thinking about it for a moment, observing the Uchiha sitting by the docks, he realized with a start just what felt so familiar about him. The dark haired boy seemed isolated and loneliness nearly rolled off of him in waves.

Perhaps this boy did not feel nearly as much suffering from elongated periods of both isolation and loneliness as the blond had, but equally he could not help but sympathize. The blond had dealt with an environment that caused both daily and understood the pain better than many in his village and even though those same villagers were the cause for his suffering, he did not wish those feelings on anyone because he knew just how much it hurt. So, even if it meant hanging out with the arrogant, show off of an Uchiha, the blond made his way down the grassy hill and onto the wooden planks, walking all the way to the end and sitting down next to him, ignoring when the dark haired boy stiffened. The blond simply began swinging his legs over the end of the dock, not saying a word.

The dark haired boy glanced up from above his knees where his face was previously buried to find that the blond that had joined him was just staring at the sunset in the distance. The Uchiha raised his head further, looking to the sunset as well, a strange and undeniable warmth beginning to pool in his chest at the silent understanding and companionship that the blond seemed to be emanating. Neither said a word as both watched the sun disappear behind the horizon.

* * *

(3-year time skip: Konoha Academy)

Iruka looked scanned his class as he walked in, taking a cursory attendance as he walked to the podium in the front of the room. He was shocked to see his favorite, hyper active student, Naruto was on time, though he seemed to be having a harder time with Sasuke's two more devoted fangirls because of it. What was even more surprising was that Naruto was uncharacteristically ignoring them rather than argue with them like he usually did.

Sasuke was also oddly quiet seeing as he usually added his own cold, biting remarks in defense of his best friend, but today he seemed almost amused at the fact that Naruto was being verbally bullied by the two loud girls. Iruka shrugged and put aside the strange behavior of the even stranger friends, turning to the board to prepare for class when he heard a poof and two small squeals of surprise that were cut of mid way.

Iruka whirled around, only to see the same scene as before however Sasuke and Naruto were now both grinning at each other, Ino and Sakura wide eyed and holding their hands firmly over their mouths. Iruka sighed as the remains of the smoke around them dispersed, already having deduced the reason for their odd behavior.

_'So Sasuke henge'd into Naruto and used a clone jutsu for himself to make me believe he was here on time and released it while the real Naruto came late and snuck in through the window as soon as my back was turned.'_ Iruka sighed again as he tiredly asked the question he knew would not be answered truthfully.

"Would any of you care to explain what just happened?" Sasuke's expression had returned to the impassive mask that he always wore around anyone but Naruto, the girls only shook their heads vigorously before scurrying to their seats, and Naruto gave that foxy grin that he was well known for, his eyes squinting closed as he placed his hands behind his head.

"Nuthin' Iruka-sensei. Just pulling a small prank on Ino and Sakura so they'd leave us alone." The excuse was simple, but surprisingly plausible, leaving Iruka slightly worried.

_'Oh great. They're getting better at infiltration and deception, not to mention planning and tactics...I didn't expect to be teaching my students in such an unintentionally roundabout way...Why can't they just pay attention during class?'_ Iruka mentally cried, but despite his miserable thoughts, he couldn't help the proud smile that made its way to his lips as he shook his head in exasperation. Those two never ceased to surprise him.

After the tragic event of the Uchiha clan massacre, Naruto and Sasuke seemed to have formed a deep and unbreakable bond of friendship. It helped both boys to not be isolated during their childhood and greatly supported Sasuke since his brother betrayed Konoha. Naruto had stepped in to replace him as a kind of irresponsible same age brother or perhaps even as an older brother figure despite Sasuke being older by a few months.

Iruka wasn't the only one surprised by the pair's forged friendship. The entire village was taken aback when the only loyal heir to the prestigious Uchiha clan started to associated with the village pariah and since Sasuke was treated like a prince, the villagers did not know how to act around the two when they were seen together.

The villagers were afraid to glare or look coldly at Naruto like they usually did for fear of Sasuke thinking it was him they were glaring at, fearful of offending him and losing any favor they thought they had. However, they were also afraid of showing respect to the heir, even if they only wished to greet him with a simple nod or bow since they were afraid others might think that they were acknowledging or showing respect to the demon brat.

The result ended up being that the two were avoided all together whenever they were seen walking around the village together which suited the two just fine since neither of them liked to interact with the villagers and the two went out of their way anyways to avoid the villagers by taking less crowded roads or simply using back roads and alleys that Naruto knew like the back of his hand.

Both Naruto and Sasuke enjoyed being able to get to know each other better** without being ogled or criticized by their peers and the villagers, both appreciating the privacy as they began to go more in depth into their lives. The two had become close friends rather quickly, their bond only growing stronger when Naruto had discovered the reason he was hated through a slip of the tongue of a drunken villager that had attempted to take Naruto's life on his birthday and later telling Sasuke after having dragged Sasuke to his favorite spot in the entire village as proof of his trust in the Uchiha. Naruto wanted to show the Uchiha that he wasn't the only one who was isolated for who he was, that Naruto could understand much better than anyone else, that he shouldn't feel so alone. He had also told Sasuke of who he suspected his father to be, again bringing with it an understanding of living up to a name, living in someone's shadow.

Having seen first hand, and being told of Naruto's life so far as well as the kyuubi and the fourth hokage, that Naruto had dealt with just as much, if not worse, suffering than himself helped put his own troubles into perspective and even helped him overcome the loss of his family, if only just a little, just as Naruto had overcome the need to feel hatred and get revenge on those who mistreat him.

Oh, Sasuke still had the desire to avenge his clan by killing his brother, but being with Naruto and hearing his dream of becoming hokage and protecting the very people that made his life a living hell made Sasuke more aware of his desire to become strong simply for the sake of killing one man rather than for the sake of protecting what is precious to him.

It was then that Sasuke had decided that he would become strong for that purpose, rather than revenge. He would become one of the strongest shinobi in the Elemental Nations to re-establish and uphold his clan's honor, to protect his village, and to help his friend achieve his own dreams. Sasuke knew he was not the leader type, though he could lead if the occasion called for it, he very much preferred to be alone, but Naruto was different.

It wasn't difficult for the Uchiha to see the hidden potential that Naruto had in both strength and charisma so it was an easy decision to decide to start training with Naruto, helping the whiskered jinchuuriki out a lot when he had admitted to struggling with academy because of past teachers having sabotaged his friend from reading and writing to taijutsu forms and kunai/shuriken throwing. It didn't help that Naruto had naturally horrendous chakra control either.

After intensive reconditioning and training on Naruto's part and some serious studying on both their parts, they had finally gotten Naruto up to speed and even managed to get themselves both up to at least mid genin level at the tender age of 10. The training had very well paid off as they had discovered the few upsides to Naruto's mis-teachings as well as why he had difficulty with his chakra. After having been forced to write and throw and lead with his non-dominant hand, Naruto had become ambidextrous, using his right hand more often even though his left was stronger.

Naruto had also learned to do any jutsu with only one handed signs along with the fact that he didn't have to say the names since his teachers had told him not to, knowing it would be more difficult for him to pull off the jutsu even with the right hand signs, but once Naruto had figured the right hand signs he could pull of the academy jutsu...all except one. The clone jutsu. This was where Sasuke's discovery had come in. Through some research in the academy libraries and some sneaking in the hokage tower***, Sasuke had discovered that the reason for Naruto's poor control was because he simply had too much of it.

Naruto, though happy with finding the cause of his problem, was not so excited towards the solution as it meant spending hours upon hours of meditation and different chakra control exercises. Thankfully their little trips to the hokage tower bore more fruit than simply just figuring out the problem and deducing the solution. On their trips they had found various chakra control exercises, scrolls on elemental affinities with chakra paper provided, some low level jutsus, and even a reference to a forbidden clone technique that was hinted to help speed up training. Needless to say both youths were interested and wasted no time finding the forbidden scroll to look up that single technique.

Though both were eager for this technique and knew that even looking into the forbidden scroll was something they shouldn't do especially for academy students, they had already broken into the Hokage tower many times and both had agreed to look and read that one technique and maybe not even use it if the repercussions were too severe.

Though at first they had felt guilty in looking in the scroll, like they had felt slightly guilty for breaking into the tower, they felt slightly justified in doing so because both Naruto and Sasuke knew that Naruto wouldn't get the education he needed if they simply waited around for an unbiased teacher so both decided to simply 'go all out' so to speak by learning all they could before they graduated and became genin.

Sasuke did so because he wanted to protect Naruto and grow stronger _with_ him, helping each other out wherever they could, augmenting their strengths and helping the other overcome their weaknesses, covering for each other's weaknesses if they couldn't. Naruto did so for similar reasons, but also to be strong enough to defend himself from ninja both in and out of the village since other villagers would not be so blind to how much he resembled his late father and him becoming an official ninja of Konoha would bring him closer to the other ninja residing here that he had not met or seen much of before and Naruto thought that was not entirely a good thing since he did not know if they would hate him for what he holds and having any ninja hate you is hazardous to your health.

Both had, then, obviously been absolutely giddy when they had found and read about the shadow clone jutsu and its capabilities, how it could send the user its memories when dispelled along with any remaining chakra it had. The only downside was the chakra consumption but Naruto had enough to be his own army and Sasuke had always had more chakra than his peers so being his own team was more than enough for him especially since he didn't need as much help as Naruto needed to with keeping up his chakra control.

Needless to say, both boys were looking at each other, their grins stretching from ear to ear as they put away the original scrolls and took with them their copied findings back to the little secret base they had made atop the hokage monument. Both boys were running at full speed, their eyes wide and alight with excitement, the two practically drooling at how much they could accomplish with that one jutsu and both thought one thing as their eyes steeled with determination.

_'Tomorrow is when the __**real**__ training starts.'_

* * *

Naruto could honestly say that kage bunshin was a godsend and in fact, he's probably already said as much to Sasuke. Thanks to that one technique, Naruto's chakra control improved by leaps and bounds, to the point where he decided to try his hand at medical ninjutsu. He soon discovered that with the amount of chakra he possessed, he could perform feats thought near impossible for most iryo-nin thanks to his monstrous chakra reserves and could possibly regrow limbs if he studied and practiced enough...as long as he kept perfect chakra control of course.

Sasuke himself had found kage bunshin useful in that he had perfected, if not mastered, most of his fire jutsu, the ones he used the most he could do easily without having to say the name or even do the handsigns, though he still made a point to expand his ninjutsu library with the scrolls they'd gotten from the tower, like Naruto.

The duo had also made a point to practice with their affinities, both happy with what they'd discovered. Sasuke had not been surprised with fire, but had been pleased that he had a secondary lightning affinity that was almost as strong as his first. Naruto himself was not surprised with his strong wind affinity, seeing as how he remembered the yondaime having one, but the secondary and tertiary affinities of water and earth shocked him a little, not because of the elements themselves, but the fact that he had two secondary affinities that were equally strong though it was obvious that wind would always be his strongest.

Their progress with their affinities soon came to a halt, however, when they discovered that their training with their elements couldn't go much further than learning the first stages along with some starting elemental ninjutsu. The grudgingly accepted that they would have to wait until they became genin to learn more powerful jutsus from their jonin sensei since they didn't wish to infiltrate the jonin sections of the Hokage Tower...even though they've technically already looked into the Forbidden Scroll which is much worse, but it wasn't their fault that the thing was so poorly guarded!

They were also somewhat unhappy with their progress in tai and genjutsu as well. Sasuke was blocked from more powerful genjutsu thanks to Uchiha scrolls being sharingan-only activated and it also stopped his progress with the Uchiha taijutsu style since he had gotten it as good as he could get it without having an active sharingan. Naruto himself could go no further with the simple academy style taijutsu and genjutsu was something he was all but immune to thanks to his chakra reserves, being that only the strongest could capture him, and thanks to his control he could perform powerful genjutsu which he was extremely proud of, but upset with since he had no access to them again having to contend himself with waiting until they get a jonin sensei.

Not satisfied with having reached a standstill in most of their training, the two quickly decided to find something to specialize in instead of sitting around waiting to build up their ninjutsu libraries. Sasuke had started practicing kenjutsu after having remembered his mother's skill with it and some simple fuinjutsu, recognizing the usefulness of being able to create simple traps, barriers, and explosion seals on the fly and it would have the bonus of improving his writing and saving him money in the long run, but he decided he wouldn't try to go beyond simple seals since he wanted to invest more time in kenjutsu.

Naruto, however, had gotten very interested in fuinjutsu, his father's famous hiraishin seal and his own shishou fuin seal having nothing to do with his interest of course. Of course his interest in fuinjutsu was also not enough to occupy his time seeing as clones could learn fuinjutsu without his needing to do anything but wait or join so he began to avidly touch on kenjutsu as well, wanting to at least be able to wield a sword if the occasion called for it, but his attention was soon diverted to something else when he found some rather old books in a forgotten part of the civilian section of the public library. It was there that Naruto had found books on a certain taijutsu called Shaolin kung fu and the history and culture of the ones who used it.

Naruto soon became fascinated with both the style and how the culture well revolved around the mastery of the former. It took no time for Naruto to enthusiastically begin training in it. As he read on about their history, he discovered that the original users, monks, had discovered their chakra, or chi as they called it, and were able to call upon it to harden certain parts of their body to withstand wooden or metal poles and even be able to stop spears and lances from running them through.

They also used their chi to augment the strength in their arms and legs so that they could break stone and metal and pierce glass with simple needles and it made Naruto think to a certain slug sannin, wondering if the woman had only rediscovered a method that had already been discovered and by monks with no more chakra than a civilian held! Needless to say, Naruto had found something besides fuinjutsu to train with.

Unfortunately for the two, they knew that they could not spend every waking minute training, so every week they would take a break from all their training for a handful of hours every day or every other day depending on the intensity of the day's training and simply relax, this did not include meditating at first since that was still considered training since it took effort. After they had finally gotten accustomed to actually relaxing and being calm, something both had trouble with seeing as both were doers and tended to always be doing something, they had begun to develop hobbies and interests outside of training.

Sasuke had, in his serious desire to continue training without training, taken up calligraphy as a hobby to do in order to wind down and relax, actually having found it peaceful and relaxing when he got into it for the purpose of winding down rather than simply for the sake of improving his fuinjutsu. He had also taken to learning how to forge his own weapons, mostly only kunai and shuriken since it would again save him money in the long run and as an added bonus, he wouldn't have to go to the village as often. It was then Naruto discovered that Sasuke was a rather frugal person despite his upbringing as the youngest Uchiha heir.

Naruto himself had found himself studying botany in his free time, growing his own fruits, vegetables, flowers, and herbs for foods, medicines, and poisons as well as simply having a fascination and strangely deep connection with nature itself. It was in his love for nature that he found meditation to be more than simple training. After having countless numbers of clones doing tedious and repetitive task and receiving those memories multiplied by hundreds, Naruto had developed an incredible patience that would astound anyone that knew Naruto to any degree, since everyone knew, Sasuke included, that Naruto had a hard time staying still for more than three minutes. Naruto had made the wonderful discovery that simply sitting in a natural setting, isolated from the village and its inhabitants gave Naruto a sense of peace that he had very seldom felt, a connection to the life around him that left him awed every time.****

Sasuke himself was more than a little surprised that meditation had become a regular habit for Naruto, but was glad that it brought Naruto that peace of mind, relaxed him in a way that Sasuke knew he couldn't be around most anyone but his most precious people and there were very few on that list for Naruto and even fewer on Sasuke's since, admittedly, Naruto was the only one currently on the list.

Of course, more often than not, the duo found themselves spending most of their free time together which wasn't much of a surprise and it wasn't difficult to think of something useful to do when they weren't training. Since both were in such politically high and/or precarious situations, the two made the easy decision to study and learn all the laws of the village and strive to learn as much as they could about politics, going through the trouble of learning as much as they could about different clan laws as well in case of any situation. Psychology as well was thrown in, knowing that a deeper understanding of the psyche would help them in the long run.

The two had also taken to learning business management seeing as both were clan heirs as well as delving further into Konoha's history, looking to the tower, when they completed the history books provided at the academy. It was through this that they learned about Uzushiogakure and the Uzumaki clan which they immediately connected with Naruto, obviously. Of course it was almost as easy finding out who Naruto's mother was after that seeing as there was only one other Uzumaki residing in Konoha before and after Uzu's destruction. Naruto was ecstatic to find out his mother was a woman called Kushina Uzumaki, better known as the red death, even though he was sad to find that she had died the same day his father had, he was happy to know who she was.*****

Sasuke could only shake his head in exasperation as he realized that his best friend was the child of the Yellow Flash and the Red Death, heir and basically prince of the fallen Uzushiogakure, and heir to the Senju clan as well since they discovered that his mom was the granddaughter of Mito Uzumaki, wife of Hashirama Senju. It should have been Lady Tsunade who was heiress to her clan, but since she has not been an active ninja in Konoha, or even been _in_ Konoha for more than ten years, the responsibilities of heir fell onto Naruto. Both Sasuke and Naruto were only glad and relieved that the Namikaze weren't technically a clan so he wasn't the heir to three clans.

Their discovery, in the end, had only made the two friends closer, making them family in all but blood, if not closer seeing as Sasuke trusted and confided in Naruto more than he ever did his own family and Naruto's bond with Sasuke was the first true one he ever made and therefore incredibly strong. Despite all the secrets his surrogate grandfather, the sandaime hokage, was keeping from him, Naruto couldn't bring it in himself to hate the old man, seeing as he probably hid everything from him for his own protection. Naruto also placed a hefty amount of blame for his misery and Uzushiogakure's obscured past on the civilian council since they were the ones that headed the academy after having managed to filch control of it from the ninja council during the Sandaime's transfer back to hokage and probably took many other responsibilities not suited for them during the power change.

Though Naruto still found some fault in some of the things his jiji did, he knew his grandfather figure was old and tired and at a disadvantage with the now overpowered council, but it would be easy enough to fix if Hiruzen just grew a backbone and reminded them that this village was a dictatorship, not a democracy. It may take time, but it could be done. Of course, Naruto wasn't very focused on his grandfather's political problems right now, instead focusing on getting stronger with Sasuke so he'd be able to defend himself against anything that may come their way.

* * *

***haha oh, Naruto, you'll find out soon enough.**

****get your mind out of the gutter you pervs! They're only eight years old and I'll tell you right now that this WILL NOT be a SasuNaru pairing. These two are just going to be bff's so don't hope for more please.**

*****Ok yeah, I know, 8-11 year olds breaking into the Hokage Tower is a little far-fetched but in my story Naruto is already established as a prankster and don't you think Naruto should already be intimately familiar with the hokage tower not only because of his visits with his surrogate grandfather but also because of the pranks he's probably pulled on not only the hokage but the anbu and any other poor chunin or jonin that's working there as well? Also, it's not like for all their little break ins, they've been looking in the heavily guarded, super secret areas, only certain archives or libraries that don't usually grant access to genin or academy students so try not to get your panties too twisted because of this.**

******Alright, so I just want to explain that he's not actually connected to nature and by that I mean he's not in sage mode since I would assume that that's what sage mode is supposed to entail. Naruto's just more in tune with nature and finds it more peaceful and relaxing since he can't relax around people or the village in general sans a few places because he's constantly on guard, but when he's alone and only surrounded by trees and nature basically, he can really relax, though his super attentiveness to nature will come into play later. Let's just say there's a reason for the hyper focus on plants rather than animals...a rather large hint there.**

*******I feel the need to explain why Naruto(and Sasuke) didn't immediately figure out who his mother was after finding out about his dad even with his last name. If you think about it, it should be fairly easy to figure out, if not then here. Uzugakure and the history of the Uzumaki in general is basically hidden from the majority of the populace and only key figures really know about them so it's understandable that they wouldn't figure it out until they actually looked up Konoha's true history in the Hokage Tower and it wasn't even their real intention, they just wanted blanks filled in that were left in the standard academy history books. There's also the fact that Kushina Uzumaki herself wouldn't exactly be super talked about in Konoha since most didn't know that she was a jinchuuriki and again most people didn't befriend her since she was an outsider/refugee. Anyone who knew her may not have even known about her jinchuuriki status and those who were close to her are either dead or ignoring/don't know about or are keeping the secret from Naruto (i.e. Mikoto Uchiha, Kakashi, and Sandaime). So add not knowing about Uzushiogakure on top of not knowing any other Uzumaki in the village as well as the fact that many people including close friends may not have known Kushina and Minato were married, Naruto chalked it up to a random name they gave him at the orphanage.**

Also, I'm really sorry that it's mostly just descriptions and details and stuff. I swear that there's going to be way more dialogue and character interaction from the next chapter on. This was just kind of a preface/base work for the rest of the story. This is also my first time writing a story in which I strive to write long chapters so bear with me.

I'd like to clarify that the entire training description/summary takes place between the ages of 8-11. Sasuke and Naruto won't be god-like as some enemies will actually be a challenge to them and the progression of their training may seem a little unrealistic but kage bunshin is basically a strength boost cheat. In all seriousness though, the usefulness of the technique shouldn't be underestimated and for as much chakra and control as they had by the time they got the technique(they'd been increasing their chakra control and reserves since they started training), both could use the technique to the utmost efficiency, making as many as possible with as little chakra as possible so try not to nitpick so much. I am sorry for the vagueness of the time that passes as it's just a general overview of training over the course of years even though it sounds like it's all happening at once.

Another point that may come up is how mature the two seem to be, but I again attribute that to liberal use of kage bunshin. Keep in mind that they make a bunch of shadow clones and then get all their memories afterwards and these are all the same person with different lines of thought, so not only does it speed up the progress of maturing, it also makes them much better 'thinkers', capable of thinking of a bunch of different scenarios or cases at one time, much like Shikamaru, though they're not geniuses with an IQ above 200, they are definitely mentally older than their physical age.

One last thing, reviews would be appreciated in any form since flaming doesn't affect me, though I ask if you do that they be legitimate and not just you bagging on my story. I do hope you like it though...


	2. Ch 2 Declarations

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.

AN: The story's gonna really kick off now so more dialogue and interaction. Sasuke and Naruto are both 12 years old now, just so we're clear.

* * *

"I can't believe I've never tried it before..." Naruto only sighed as he looked away from Sasuke's frustrated face with a head shake.

"How many times have I told you already to stop beating yourself up over it?!" Sasuke only gave an amused smirk as he took in his friend's exasperation.

"Twelve." Naruto turned to Sasuke with a question on his face. "You've told me twelve times." Black eyes watched the blond's eyebrow twitch with irritation at his blunt and factual answer, finding that he was cheering himself up rather well. Of course, the reminder of what made him upset in the first place had him frowning again as they walked.

"Look, Sasuke, it's not exactly like you were focusing on what your eyes looked like when you witnessed the Uchiha massacre. If I recall at the time, you were stuck in the strongest sharingan genjutsu for three days which was actually only a few seconds and _then_ you were unconscious for a few days. Seriously circumstances weren't exactly on your side and I think you were kind of too busy mourning and plotting revenge to actually think about how your entire family getting killed might have activated your sharingan."

Sasuke's hands clenched into fists in his pockets as he looked to the side, slightly embarrassed at the reminder of his obsession with revenge. "...I guess you're right," he managed to mutter out begrudgingly.

Naruto only scoffed and made his friend grunt when he smacked him on the back unnecessarily hard, grinning at Sasuke's peeved expression. "Of course I'm right! I'm always right!" Sasuke only scoffed as he rubbed his shoulder.

"Always right, huh? So what's that energy inside us called again? Catra, was it?" Naruto's face heated until it was tomato red making Sasuke actually laugh out loud.

"Shut up, teme! I was eight years old dammit!" Before the two could continue their banter, a familiar voice stopped them.

"Well if it isn't my two best customers!" Both turned to the ramen chef a little surprised that they had already arrived at their destination. "The usual?" He asked with a grin, one that Naruto and Sasuke responded with their own full blown grin and smirk, respectively.

"Yeah Teuchi-oji-san! The usual, please!" No sooner had the two sat down that Teuchi was already yelling out the orders to his daughter in the kitchen. She stuck her head out to greet the two, recognizing the order.

"I haven't seen you two for a few days. I guess Sasuke's been making you cook for him, huh, Naruto?" She laughed at his scowl before disappearing back into the kitchen.

"I told Sasuke I'd make him food if he's the one that bought the ingredients for both of us. I didn't actually think the teme would up and do it!" Naruto had been banking on Sasuke's dislike of going into the village more than necessary, but he'd obviously underestimated how much he liked Naruto's home cooking.

"Doesn't mean I'm gonna stop eating ramen though! Especially yours old man, it's way too good to give up!" At the last part, Naruto gave his award winning grin, one that was fully reciprocated by the old man along with a quick bark of laughter.

"Ha! I'd expect nothing less from my number one customer!" He gave a small grin to his dark haired customer. "Sasuke may come as often as you but he doesn't eat _nearly_ as much!" Sasuke only shook his head as their bowls were placed in front of them and openly showed a face of awe and disgust as Naruto began to _inhale_ the five bowls that were placed in front of him at impossible speeds.

"Being able to eat that much that fast is a...talent that I am glad I don't have because it's unhealthy and entirely," he grimaced as Naruto worked on his last bowl, "unnatural," Sasuke finished with a deadpan expression and bland voice. Teuchi laughed outright at the boy's reaction when he noticed something about the two.

"Hey, Naruto, have you gotten taller?" Naruto slurped up the last of his fifth bowl as Sasuke gave his friend an appraising look, answering for him.

"He might have. I'm always with him so I wouldn't notice." Naruto only put down the empty bowl and adjusted his goggles as he stood up, Sasuke doing the same. The two placed their money on the counter before Naruto turned to look straight at Sasuke, finding that his eyes moved just the slightest bit down in order to make eye contact.

"WHOA! I'm an inch taller than you! How did that happen?!" Before either Teuchi or Sasuke could even laugh, Naruto continued. "Aw, man! When Ino and Sakura notice, they're gonna pound me for 'looking down' on Sasuke!" As the unpredictable blond ruffled his hair in frustration, the old man burst out into laughter while Sasuke only shook his head with a smirk on his face, leading out the frustrated ninja-in-training.

Naruto sighed as they walked off, his usual too-large grin taking up half his face, his hands behind his head as the two walked through the village, people avoiding the two like the plague, somehow finding themselves suddenly distracted with their children a nearby shop or whatever is in their hands. As they got further and further away from the village, and closer to the stairs at the foot of the Hokage monument, Naruto's smile lessened and lessened until he had on a serious expression, one most would think unusual for Naruto.

Sasuke only sighed as they climbed the stairs to make their way to their usual spot atop the yondaime's head. "Why do you insist on wearing that idiot mask, aniue?"* Naruto only chuckled lightly as they sat themselves down, looking out at the village with the sun coloring the sky pastel oranges and pinks.

"How many times have I told you not to call me that?"On top of it being respectful, the one saying it is_ the_ proud Uchiha..._and_ you're technically older than me by a few months! Overall it's downright creepy, so stop it," he stated bluntly, mock shivering at certain points for emphasis. Sasuke only gave a dry chuckle in return.

"I'll stop calling you aniue the day you decide to officially change your name to Namikaze Naruto." A groan was his response, letting his head fall to rest on his raised knee.

"It'll be a while before that can happen! If I ever get the chance to!" Sasuke only smirked in victory.

"Exactly, so why don't you just get used to it, _aniue_." Naruto only sighed and looked back up at the village, watching the sun begin to touch the lining of trees beneath it, the oranges and pinks having turned into burnt orange and red. Both were silent as the sun continued to disappear behind the trees.

"...why are you so insistent on calling me that?" Recognizing Naruto's serious tone, he responded in kind, answering truthfully, but not bothering to take his eyes off the village, not wanting to miss the always incredible sight the sunset provided.

"From the first day that you approached me, that day at the dock...you never really seemed younger than me." Naruto sent his friend a confused glance.

"Obviously I'm not talking about physically since you were a midget back then," Sasuke expertly ignored Naruto's glare and continued, "and I also had the preconceived notion that you were a pranking, ramen, orange loving dobe." Naruto snorted at that, making Sasuke smirk before his expression turned serious again.

"But then we started hanging out and talking more, and even though at first you tried to hide it, your true personality was starting to surface. Certain things you said and did, things I'd catch you reading or writing before you hid it were way beyond what the dead last should have been capable of." Naruto shifted, uncomfortable of the reminder of when he hid his true self from his friend. His eyes widened when he saw one of Sasuke's rare, true smiles on the Uchiha's stern face.

"Then you trusted me enough to drop the mask, then later telling me your most important secrets." Sasuke clenched his hand on his shirt, fisting it over his heart. "I admit at first that I thought the reason you were so smart and mature was because of who your father is and what's inside you, but it couldn't have been since you didn't know about it until you told me yourself." Naruto as well had clenched his hands into fists, staring down at them and giving a weak laugh.

"C'mon, Sasuke, you didn't really think I was smart and mature did you? I had to use a kanji dictionary for all those books I read and it took me way too long to finish even the shortest one. Heck, I could barely write my own name before you helped me out." Sasuke only shook his head.

"This is exactly what I'm talking about. It wasn't your fault, the teachers intentionally taught you wrong and tried every way possible to sabotage you, but as soon as I taught you the right way, you took to it like a fish to water. I rarely had to repeat something even if it did take you a while to understand it." His brows furrowed as he continued speaking.

"When you kept getting stronger so fast while we were training, I couldn't understand how and I was jealous, wanting that strength to defeat my brother, but when you told me your reasons for trying so hard," Sasuke remembered the day he had simply asked Naruto, "telling me you were growing stronger to protect your precious people, to protect your home, your village, and to prove to those who have mistreated you your entire life...and the whole time you were striving towards a goal people constantly told you was impossible for someone like you..." Sasuke took a few deep breaths as he took in the sight of the entire village, the significance of such a scene.

Naruto had taught him that the Uchiha didn't define Konoha, the Uchiha was only a _part_ of Konoha, a rather small part if one took into account all the seperate clans, non-clan ninja, and civilians. And while Sasuke still valued his clan, he understood that it was not superior towards the village or anyone in it, that he was a member of Konoha and that that was where his loyalty should lie. Naruto taught him that strength came from the will to protect, not just the desire for revenge.

It was Naruto that taught him to _really_ understand the 'Will of Fire' that Konoha was so well known for. He turned to Naruto, showing him his own 'Will of Fire', the fire that Naruto had ignited in him.

"I call you aniue because I respect you. I respect you because you are _stronger_** than me. You also made me understand _how_ you gained that strength. I respect your determination, I support your goal, and I trust in your 'Will of Fire.'" He faced Naruto full on, his back straight and his eyes serious.

"You are my first and only best friend. You are family in all but blood, closer and more trustworthy than my my own family was and an even better older brother than Itachi-nii was." Naruto stared wide eyed at Sasuke, watching as he held up his hand, palm front and fingers spread slightly.

"Aniue." Naruto shook away the emotion that threatened to water his eyes, giving Sasuke a warm, goofy smile as he clasped their hands together, still raised in the air.

"Otouto," Naruto responded happily before both let go only to surprise Sasuke when he used that same hand to flick him on the nose, making the Uchiha let out an uncharacteristic yelp of pain and shock. Naruto's eyes twinkled in amusement as Sasuke raised his hands up to his nose as if to cover it from further assault.

"My, that was the longest I've heard you speak in a while." Naruto gave a mischievous smirk. "Are you professing your undying love to me, otouto? If so, many of your fangirls will be very disappointed." Sasuke's cheeks reddened as he sputtered behind his hands, making Naruto laugh out loud.

"Shut up, aniue! I can't believe you said that!" He shouted indignantly, only making Naruto laugh harder. Eventually, Sasuke couldn't help but join Naruto in his laughter, finding his amusement rather contagious. The two eventually quieted down, lapsing into a comfortable silence as they turned their attention to the darkened sky, the stars sparkling brightly now that the sun had gone.

"...guess we're spending the night here again, huh?" Sasuke nodded mutely, laying back with his hands behind his head.

"It's not like we need to go back for clothes. At least not since we learned the kage bunshin." Naruto also laid back with a smile.

"Are you talking about how we sent them for clothes or how they expanded our little underground hideout to a five room, two floor base?"

"Both," he replied with a smirk, remembering how many clones they had expended on that project of theirs, one that was very well worth it and impressive for two academy students in his opinion.

The two had camped rather constantly in the sparse forestry found a good distance away from the buildings visible from the village atop the mountain and it was Naruto who discovered the small, natural cave on the other end of the forest that served well as a secret hide away for two small boys. When they began to grow, they expanded the cave and used it more to store extra tools and rations in case they stayed too long while they trained in the privacy of the forest, since the cave was right in front of a clearing that served well for training purposes.

After a while the two had begun to camp there as well, learning to get food by hunting the little game there was in the forest and foraging for any edible plants and berries, it was good training. When the weather had begun to turn from the warms of summer to the more bitter cold of fall, the two realized that they would not be able to camp out if the weather did not allow for it since they had no real shelter, the cave was too small to comfortably fit the two anymore even if they did remove anything they had stored there.

Their camping trips had come to a temporary halt, but it did not last long seeing as they soon after made the trip to the tower that gained them the kage bunshin technique. Naruto had wasted not time in sending a small group of clones to work on expanding the cave while the original and Sasuke trained. It became almost ridiculously easy to make the cave bigger when Naruto learned some earth jutsu, making a certain little dream of his quite possible.

It was Naruto who had always dreamed of having a 'super-awesome secret base-dattebayo!' so he was quick to implement his dream now that he had the means, though the actual structure was thankfully much more practical than his original, and admittedly juvenile, design of having nearly a palace underground rather than the simple two floor, five room design he stuck with. The first floor was actually directly beneath the cave, a naturally hidden hole in the ground of the cave permitting them entrance, a knotted rope all they used to climb up since they tended to simply hop down.

The first floor consisted of a spacious area that was roughly around 2,169 square feet. There was some walled areas that served as empty rooms that soon became two bedrooms, a library, a storage area for equipment of any kind, an extra room with no specific use, and the fifth room was something of a shared study/work space for Naruto and Sasuke's more table or quiet oriented hobbies. On the wall adjacent to the rooms were smooth stone counters that were hollowed out and contained built in shelves for some, obviously meant to be a kitchen of sorts. The entire floor was supported by well placed, simple stone columns that ensured it would not cave in even in case of an earthquake or attack.

The second floor could be entered through a wooden trap door the two had made after the bare bones were completed and served as a near empty, no room, area that served as their training ground. The spaced columns scattered across the area served well for their chakra control and getting used to fighting while sticking to vertical surfaces.

Both floors had been rather barren for a time, but the two eventually began to add furniture, sparsely decorating the first floor walls with the occasional painting or picture, though any pictures shown were of scenery. It was when the duo had begun gaining hobbies and training in a specific area that their base began to really begin to look more than spartan. Sasuke's and Naruto's best calligraphy hung on the walls, most of them quotes of previous hokages or certain kanji characters for certain words like bonds, determination, fire, etc. Naruto's study of botany began to show as he had started adding potted plants anywhere he could, all of the plants used to low lighting.

Lighting, at first had been a problem since they had no outlets for electricity and had to contend with candles and gas/oil lamps...at least until Naruto started learning more about sealing. Fuinjutsu was a small godsend for the efficiency of their base. Adjusted flash seals along the walls and ceilings of the floors gave the place proper lighting that could be adjusted with a visible master seal that controlled all the others and was attuned to only their chakra. Security seals at the entrance of the first and second floor ensured that they would be the only ones getting in since the seal required the blood and chakra of an individual to be keyed in. Privacy and shock-proofing seals ensured that no one would be bale to hear them, no matter how much noise they made and the Sandaime couldn't even scry them on his crystal ball.

Naruto had really outdone himself when he created specific seals to allow for a fully functioning kitchen and allowed them to have a bathroom as well. Adjustable heating seals served as a usable stove and open oven and adjusted storage seals served as a sink after making parts of the counter tops concave. A fridge was also easily doable as all it required was an adjusted heating seal that cooled instead of heated. The heating seals and water storage seals made it easy to make a bath after the bath itself had been created, the sink just as easy, the tricky part lay with the toilet. After having planned and designed seals and how they would work with a regular toilet, Naruto managed to make a working toilet, a water seal in the tank of the toilet to provide the water, that could be easily refilled via another seal, and attaching it to the flush valve that also triggered an adjusted storage seal at the bottom of the toilet that destroyed its contents as soon as the toilet emptied itself. It was kind of gross to think about but worth it in the long run since they didn't have to go out into the woods just to do their business and it helped that you couldn't see or hear the process happening in the seal.

Though it was true that it was Naruto's childish dream to have a secret base, the effort put into making it so homey was to have a safe place to stay where he would be able to relax without worry and spend however long he wanted with Sasuke. Sasuke himself was of a similar opinion, but more because he did not like going back home to an empty clan compound and he knew Naruto did not like going back to a ratty, empty apartment. The base served as a safe haven from their empty homes and kept them from the prying eyes of the villagers, allowing them to train in secret and with peace of mind. It was also a very convenient place to hide the scrolls of copied jutsu and other things that they'd acquired from Hokage tower.

Remembering all this, Sasuke didn't mind at all that they would be spending the night there again.

"It'd definitely be a nice break since Iruka-sensei's really been on our cases about studying and stuff," Naruto half complained, making Sasuke look over at him incredulously.

"Don't you know why he's pushing you so hard recently?" Naruto just shrugged.

"I don't know. I figured it had to do with the prank my clone pulled recently while we were training." He grinned at remembering himself using the sexy no jutsu transformation technique on the hokage while Iruka was there to hand in some academy reports. Man, the looks on their faces were priceless! Naruto couldn't believe how much blood spurted from their noses before they passed out.

"Aniue, the graduation exams are in two days."

"WHAT?!" Naruto shouted as he sat up abruptly. "Oh crap! And this is the time I'm actually trying to graduate! I haven't even started preparing yet!" Sasuke sat up as well, giving his older brother a strange look.

"What do you need to prepare for? You already know all the material that'll be covered. It'll be cakewalk for you to 'barely' pass." Naruto shook his head vigorously, his brows furrowing as he crossed his legs, settling into a 'thinking pose.'

"Not that! I have to make preparations for my big graduation prank! After we become official Konoha genin, I'll have less time to pull pranks on the unsuspecting populace so I have to do something that the village won't forget anytime soon!" Sasuke audibly smacked his forehead with his palm, groaning as he ran his hand down his face and shaking his head in exasperation.

"Only you, aniue." Naruto grinned.

"You better believe it! There's only one Namikaze Uzumaki Naruto after all!" He stated proudly, pointing a thumb at his chest.

* * *

(Early the next morning)

"NARUUUTTTOOO!" Naruto's laughter had abruptly stopped at the sound of that particular voice, paling and gulping as he looked up at the one person he didn't want to see.

_'What the hell! How does Iruka-sensei still find me when even jonin and anbu can't?! He's a sensor right?! He has to be a sensor!'_ Naruto thought frantically as he scrambled to escape, only to be grabbed by the back of his jacket by a very angry academy teacher.

"What the hell are you doing during class time?! Desecrating the Hokage Monument! What are you thinking, you idiot?!" Naruto only offered Iruka-sensei his foxy grin as he was reminded of his masterpiece. He looked at the monument in all its graffiti'ed glory. The shodaime's cheeks were emblazoned with the Uzumaki clan symbol and on his forehead in beautiful kanji was written 'tree hugger.' The nidaime's face was the least painted on as it only had two glistening tears on the edge of his eyes and the impression that he was biting his lower lip, employing the dreaded puppy eye jutsu. The sandaime's face was also rather simple in that he had reddened cheeks, a small nosebleed and 'ero-jiji' written on his forehead.

What Naruto was most proud of, however, was the face of his father. All he had done was add color to the face and added his own whisker marks, showing just how much he resembled the yondaime. Of course his fun leading around the 'elite' ninja of the village was stopped when Iruka caught him, tied him up, and dragged him to class.

Naruto grunted when Iruka plopped him down and clicked his tongue in irritation at getting caught, turning his face away and pouting like a brat. Iruka only set a stern glare at him, his arms crossed.

"Tomorrow is the Ninja Academy's graduation exam. You've failed the last two times!" Naruto watched in hidden amusement as the vein on Iruka's forehead throbbed when he pointed an accusing finger down at the whiskered blond. "This is no time to be causing trouble, MORON!" Naruto only gave an irritated sigh and looked away lazily.

"Yeah, yeah." He struggled to hold back a snicker when he thought he audibly heard the remains Iruka's patience snap. The angry sensei turned to the class then.

"Time for a review test on the henge no jutsu. Everyone line up!"

"WHAT~!" The entire class seemed to chorus, sans one Uchiha of course.

"Transform perfectly into me!" Iruka instructed his students. Naruto yawned as he waited for his turn, grinning when his name was called.

"Transform! Sexy no jutsu!" The very nude 'Naruko', her naughty bits barely covered by some smoke, posed erotically and blew a kiss to the shocked Iruka, making him have another nosebleed.

"Gyahahaha! How'd you like seeing that jutsu again, Iruka-sensei?!" Of course Iruka held Naruto back after he woke up and class had ended, quick to yell.

"YOU DUMBASS! I TOLD YOU NOT TO USE THAT STUPID JUTSU ANYMORE!" And of course, Iruka also issued out the punishment of Naruto having to clean the Hokage Monument of his art, though Naruto knew that his teacher would have given him the punishment regardless of whether or not he chose to employ his perverted jutsu.

"I won't let you go home until you clean all of it." Iruka stated with a scowl, his arms crossed as he eyed Naruto who was scrubbing away at the shodaime's face.

"Like I care...it's not like there's anyone waiting at home anyways." _'I'm glad I used water soluble paint...and that I told Sasuke not to expect me today, but man cleaning this will be tedious without shadow clones!' _"Bah!" Naruto just started scrubbing harder, wanting to get this over with.

"Naruto..." Naruto squinted up at Iruka suspiciously, wary of the softer tone.

"Now what?" Iruka was squatted on the shodaime's headband, a finger scratching a slightly flushed cheek, his eyes looking away.

"Well...umm...if you clean this all up, I'll buy you some ramen tonight." Naruto's face lit up like it was Christmas morning.

_'Free ramen! Alright!'_ Naruto stripped off his bulky jacket, leaving him in his black t-shirt. "OK! I'll work hard! I will!" Naruto exclaimed with renewed enthusiasm.

* * *

(later at Ichiraku's)

"Naruto?"

"Hm?" Naruto continued to expertly slurp his noodles as he turned squinted eyes to Iruka.

"Why'd you do that to the monument? Don't you know who the hokage are?" Naruto resisted the urge to sweat drop.

_'Iruka-sensei, you've lectured on the hokage a million times. Even if you think I'm an idiot, isn't that a little much?' _Naruto replied readily. "Of course! Basically those that receive the hokage name are the strongest ninja in the village, right? And among them is the 4th, a hero who saved the village from a fox demon." He made sure to respond with his mouth full of food. _'Gotta keep up the mask a little longer after all.'_

"Then why?" Iruka asked while Naruto stuffed his face.

"One day I'm gonna get the hokage name..." he finished up his bowl and dramatically pointed his chopsticks at Iruka, a confident grin on his face, "and then I'm going to surpass all the previous hokages!" Iruka only continued to chew his noodles as he stared.

Naruto grinned as he squinted and raised his hands, his palms pressed together. "...by the way sensei, I have a request..."

"What you want seconds?" He asked as he continued to chew.

"No...can I borrow your leaf head protector?-3" _'I wonder if maybe I've gotten a little too good at acting childish...that's not to say I'm not actually like this sometimes...I think Sasuke would attest to that.'_

"Oh this?" He fingered the headband with his right hand. "No no, this is for after you graduate. This is a symbol that you've come of age. Maybe you'll get one tomorrow."

_'Maybe? Gee, thanks for the vote of confidence.'_ Naruto pouted and immediately changed attitude. "STINGY!" Iruka only laughed at his student.

"So that's why you took off your goggles." Naruto retorted swiftly and effectively.

"SECONDS!" Naruto shouted to Teuchi. _'I'll hit him where it hurts!...his wallet.'_

Iruka's eyes bulged at his shout. "Huh?!"

* * *

***Aniue is a very respectful, almost archaic term to call one's older brother, if you didn't get it at first or at all. Sorry if it confused you any.**

****Sasuke isn't talking about Naruto's physical strength, he's talking about Naruto's will, literally. Sasuke knows he doesn't have the same determination to achieve his goals as Naruto does, especially considering how Naruto made him realize that focusing on revenge would only hinder him. He's literally talking about Naruto's 'Will of Fire', an abstract term I have difficulty describing, but I want to explain at least that I feel Sasuke never really had the 'Will of Fire' in canon, screw his recent and sudden about face. In my story, Naruto showed it to him and inspired it from him early on so Sasuke does have it now(again in my story) but he knows it's nothing compared to Naruto's because he knows that unlike himself, Naruto is very selfless. Sasuke understands himself well enough that he knows he wouldn't sacrifice himself for anyone, except maybe Naruto and that'd have to be a scenario in which he knows that Naruto can be killed(keep in mind he knows about kyuubi's healing and factors in how hard it would be to fight Naruto, much less bring him down.) So yeah.**

More dialogue and character interaction like I promised. Hopefully it wasn't too bad. I'm not sure when I can post the next chapter since I'm going back to college in late August and I need to figure out about enrolling in classes and stuff, but hopefully I'll figure it out in a day or two and get back to writing. Til then enjoy and remember that I like reviews (^u^)


	3. Ch 3 The Traitor

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto

Cleared up any business for five days, so I should be able to squeeze in a few chapters hopefully...

* * *

Naruto yawned as he slumped on his desk, the written portion having been completed a while ago. Iruka's voice had the whiskered blond looking up lazily, however.

"Now for the final part of the exam, you must perform henge, substitution, and clone jutsu. When you are called, come to the next room." Naruto suppressed another yawn as he waited for his name to be called.

_'The academy three, huh? Should be easy enough. Maybe I'll make too many clones and overload them a bit to make the coloring a little off. Don't want to pass with flying colors and get moved up from dead-last...'_ Naruto 'excitedly' ran out of the room when his name was called, hungrily eyeing the headbands on the table when he entered the test room. He noticed that there was only one headband that had a black cloth. _'Definitely grabbin' that one.' _

"Alright Naruto, show us a henge, transform into anyone," he glared harshly at the blond, "_except_ that perverted jutsu!" Naruto only grinned.

"Of course not, Iruka-sensei! Henge no jutsu!" Naruto immediately performed a henge, not giving Iruka the opportunity to speak again, turning into an exact replica of the fourth hokage, mildly surprising the two watching since the similarities were made glaringly obvious as the Naruto practically looked like a mini yondaime. Naruto only continued grinning while in the henge.

"E-er, very good. That's acceptable. Now perform a substitution with the chair a few feet away from you." Iruka managed to get out. Naruto did just that, not even bothering to call out the name, only doing the hand signs again slightly surprising the two.

"Very good, Naruto!" Iruka said happily, proud of Naruto, before his enthusiasm slightly died down. "Alright...and now clone jutsu." Naruto pretended to take a shaky, concentrated breath as he made the appropriate hand signs.

"Bunshin no Jutsu!" Naruto was prepared to slightly overload the technique when he realized that someone else was doing it for him. In the split second between the activation of the jutsu and smoke covering Naruto, the whiskered jinchuuriki noticed Iruka's assistant, Mizuki was giving him a mean smirk, making a single hand sign beneath the table.

Naruto's eyes narrowed as the smoke surrounded him. _'That idiot Mizuki-teme is trying to purposely make me fail. It's too bad for him I accounted for chakra disruption...even if it's not my own chakra doing it.'_ After the smoke dissipated, there were six near perfect copies of Naruto. Some of the clones had colors too dark or colors too pale, but they all were upright and acted normal.

Iruka examined them carefully before writing on his clipboard. "That's very good, much better than your last attempt. The coloring could use work and you made a few too many, but it's acceptable." Iruka looked up at his student with a grin. "Congratulations, Naruto! You pass!" Naruto gave a grin that looked like it threatened to split his face.

Both teachers jumped slightly when Naruto darted towards them and snatched up the only headband with a black cloth.

"Alright! I passed! I passed! Wait til I tell Jiji!" He shouted excitedly, pumping his fist in the air as he jumped around in celebration. Iruka only chuckled while an angry and frustrated Mizuki expertly hid his irritation and put on a nice guy face.

"Good job, Naruto, but try not to leave until everyone else has finished their test alright?" Naruto himself, hid his suspicion and only nodded enthusiastically at his second teacher.

"Whatever you say Mizuki-sensei!" Naruto shouted at him as he strutted out the door, holding the headband still in his hand with a bone white grip.

* * *

Naruto couldn't help but become slightly depressed as he took in all the parents praising their kids, unable to help but think of what it would have been like if his parents had still been alive.

"Great job! That's my son!"

"Now you're a man!"

"I'm so proud of you! I'm going to make your favorite dinner." Naruto shook his head to get rid of his depressing thoughts, finding comfort in thinking of how his Jiji would react when he told him and the celebration with Sasuke waiting at their base.

"Hey, that kid..." Naruto's ears perked up, recognizing that tone of voice.

"Yeah, that's _him._ I can't believe they passed that _thing_."

"That's horrible."

"Something that dangerous shouldn't be allowed to become a shinobi. Especially since he's-"

"Hey we can't talk about that." Naruto put on his goggles, not feeling like putting on Konoha's symbol at the moment, glad he had told Sasuke to leave as soon as he could otherwise he would have probably killed those two shinobi for what they said about his respected aniue.

Naruto only sighed as he walked off, using the back road to avoid anyone only for Mizuki to call his name.

"Naruto." Said blond whirled around as if surprised, though he had sensed Mizuki since a while ago.

"Mizuki-sensei!" Naruto resisted the urge to groan when Mizuki kneeled down with one of the most false smile he had ever seen.

"Don't let what those people say get you down. You trained hard to pass today after all." Naruto only mumbled a half-hearted agreement, dejectedly looking down as he kicked up a little dirt. Naruto saw Mizuki's little smirk before he suddenly looked sympathetic.

"Hey, wanna know a special secret?" Naruto peaked up at his suspicious sensei curiously.

_'This oughta be good,'_ Naruto thought dryly.

* * *

_'I should talk to Jiji about how it's waaaay to easy to break in here,'_ Naruto thought with a sweat drop as he snuck around the tower. _'I mean, seriously. I'm wearing my bright orange jumpsuit and have been sneaking around with academy level stealth skills. Where the hell is everyone?'_

"Naruto, what are you doing at my house at this hour?!" I sighed in exasperation and whirled to be face to face with the sandaime.

"Finally! About time someone showed up! I've been waiting for someone to catch me since I started climbing the side of the tower!" Naruto exclaimed, exasperated, only serving to confuse the hokage greatly.

"Wait, what? Why in the world are you trying to get caught?" Naruto's brow scrunched up as he crossed his arms, the entire image looking rather funny as Naruto 'tried' to look serious.

"Well, Mizuki-sensei came up to me after I had passed today and told me about this extra credit test I could take to up my score." Naruto watched in hidden interest as the hokage stiffened at this. _'Yeah, he's definitely a traitor, though it was pretty obvious after he told me about the test...'_

"Oh?" The hokage asked with forced amusement and nonchalance. "And what is this test he gave you?" Naruto shrugged.

"Break into the Hokage Tower, find some scroll labeled 'Forbidden' or somethin' and learn one jutsu from it at a secret meeting spot while I waited for him there, all without getting caught. I thought it was a little fishy so I decided to tell you about it." Naruto saw the subtle hand motion he made that summoned an anbu from somewhere.

"Well, I'm glad you told me, Naruto. I think I'm going to assign you your first mission." Naruto perked up immediately at that while the hokage turned to the anbu. "Cat, go get the Forbidden scroll for me." Naruto was nearly bouncing off the walls at the prospect of a mission.

"Well, what is it Jiji! Tell me! Tell Me!" The hokage chuckled at his surrogate grandson's enthusiasm.

"Listen carefully, Naruto. This is going to be an A-rank mission." Naruto's eyes began to sparkle excitedly. "Your mission is to draw out the traitor chunin Mizuki."

"What are the parameters of the mission?" Naruto questioned as Cat came back with the scroll in her hands. Naruto internally smacked himself when the hokage looked startled at the question, but hoped the curious childlike gaze he was sending him would disarm the old man...which it thankfully did. He smiled as he handed Naruto the scroll, watching as the blond strapped it to his back.

"The anbu will be following you from the shadows but will step in only if you are in danger of dying."

_'That's comforting,'_ Naruto thought, _'not that it's any different from how they guarded me as a kid..._'

"I'd like you to knock him out, but you are allowed to use deadly force if necessary." Naruto nodded and grinned.

_'Alright, they'd prefer him alive, but I've got the okay to kill him. Nice to know.' _Naruto made his way over to the window. "Understood, Jiji! I'll be back in no time so you better get my pay ready!" The hokage only chuckled, but stopped him as Naruto was already halfway out the window.

"Naruto," the blond looked back questioningly, "what would you have done if Mizuki was telling the truth and this really was a test?" Naruto only gave a mischievous grin that sent a shiver down the old man's spine.

"That's easy, Jiji! I woulda just used my Sexy no Jutsu on ya and run off after finding the scroll!" Naruto laughed at the hokage's shocked and mortified expression as he leapt out the window to make his way to where Mizuki-teme had told him to go.

* * *

Naruto was catching his breath, sitting on the forest floor as he got his heart rate back to normal. _'Damn Mizuki-teme must have gone around telling everyone I stole the scroll. No other way all the ninja of the village would know to chase me around this particular night. I'm so giving him a good pounding.'_

"...I've found you...HEY!" Naruto's head snapped up to see an angry, smiling, and shaking Iruka.

_'Are you kidding me?! How the hell did he find me?! Oh crap oh crap oh crap, think, THINK!' _Naruto immediately jumped up with a grin, posing as he pointed at Iruka with both hands. "Oh! I found the nose bleeder!" It was then Iruka employed his famous 'big head' jutsu.

"**IDIOT!** I FOUND YOU!" Naruto only scratched the back of his head, while Iruka huffed in irritation.

The blond chuckled lightly. "You found me...I've only learned one skill." Iruka put his hands on his hips.

"Hey, you're all beaten up. What were you doing?" Naruto glanced at his beaten up clothes, noting all the small scrapes and bruises on his skin.

_'Well I had to pass the time somehow so why not spar with my shadow clones?'_ Naruto only grinned excitedly at his teacher. "Never mind that! Hey, hey! I'm gonna try an incredible jutsu! If I do it...I get a higher passing score right?!" Naruto mentally rolled his eyes. _'I think I'm starting to feel insulted that people actually think I'm this stupid. I can't wait until the day of team assignments.'_

Naruto only squatted slightly as he made the hand sign for the kage bunshin, but not actually performing it, pretending to take time to concentrate. "Naruto," Iruka called.

"Hn?" He asked, borrowing the Uchiha's famous monosyllable.

"Where did you get that scroll on your back?" Naruto straightened.

"Oh this?" He looked back at the scroll. "Mizuki-sensei told me about it and about this place too." _'It'd be nice if you figure this out soon, Iruka-sensei, Mizuki's getting closer.'_ "He said if I showed you this skill, I'd definitely be rookie of the year!" Both Iruka and Naruto stiffened as they felt and/or heard a volley of kunai coming their way.

Iruka was the first to react, pushing Naruto out of the way before he could leap away on his own, leaving Iruka to get hit. _'Crap, crap, crap. This teme has horrible timing. Maybe training with my clones wasn't such a good idea.'_ Naruto thought as he struggled to feign ignorance and idiocy, looking between the crouching Mizuki on a tree branch and the injured Iruka.

"Nice job in finding him." Mizuki mocked his childhood friend, his arm still outstretched from when he threw the kunai, two large shuriken tied to his back. Iruka glared at the traitorous chunin.

"I see...so that's what going on..." Naruto, meanwhile, was silently releasing his weight seals, knowing genin speed wasn't going to cut it.*

"Naruto, give me the scroll." Naruto twitched at having been addressed, covering up his tenseness by looking stupidly between his sensei and the traitor, sending Iruka a nervous grin.

"Hey! Hey! What's going on here?! Hey!" Iruka responded to the exchange by struggling of the wall he was leaning off, pulling a bloody kunai out of his chest though more littered his body.

"Naruto! Don't give him the scroll even if you die!" Mizuki only stood with a smirk. "That is a dangerous scroll that has forbidden ninjutsu sealed within it! Mizuki used you in order to get his hands on it!" Naruto took this as his cue to look shocked before standing and looking pissed and determined.

Mizuki's only response was to grin and look down at him condescendingly. "Naruto, there's no point in you having it. I'll tell you the truth." Naruto tensed, Iruka as well, both dreading what they knew was coming.

"N-no! Don't!" Iruka yelled out futilely.

_'Oh geez, don't tell me Mizuki-teme's that stupid. Don't tell me he's going to-'_

"12 years ago...you know about the demon fox being sealed right?" Naruto internally sighed.

_'...yeah he really is that stupid...'_

**_'And he's technically wrong, too. I'm a being that's made entirely out of chakra, I'm much more powerful than some measly demons, but what do you expect from a stupid hairless_ _flesh-bag?'_**

"Since that incident, a new rule was created in the village." Naruto's eyes became wide at that, looking at Mizuki in false confusion.

"...a rule?" He asked in a naive tone._ 'Kurama?** What are you doing awake?'_ He asked his furry partner. The fox's response was to scoff.

_**'You kidding? This is the most eventful thing that's happened since you met me! You think I'm going to miss out on some entertainment after being stuck in a dank sewer for nearly ten years? Not to mention the hundreds of years stuck in your mom and grandma. God those two were such-'**_

"But Naruto, this rule was never told to you." Naruto was glad for the interruption, not wanting to hear Kurama cursing his family.

**_'I can hear your thoughts you know!'_ **Naruto ignored him in favor of getting back to his pro acting.

"...not to me? Why?! What is this rule?!" Mizuki began to chuckle menacingly under his breath. "What...kind of rule is it?" He smirked at Naruto as he answered.

"The rule is that nobody's allowed to talk about the fact that you're the demon fox."

_**'WHAT?! DID THAT WORTHLESS SHITSTAIN JUST MISTAKE ME FOR A TINY LITTLE MEAT-BAG?!'**_

"Huh?" Inwardly, Naruto was fuming at the fox's outburst. _'Excuse me?'_ He thought in a falsely sweet tone. "What do you mean?!"

_**'Er, who I totally think better of compared to the rest of you tiny humans, since, you know, you're all kinda small to me, I am supposed to be bigger than even your Hokage monument... and you kind of look the same to me, well most of you. I only bother remembering my enemies and well there's you...but seriously you're all so small, like ants or something...no wait fleas. Yeah that's a good size comparison.'**_

"Stop it!" Iruka yelled, bringing Naruto back from being entertained by Kurama's form of an apology.

"It means that you," Mizuki continued, unaffected, "are the nine tailed demon that killed Iruka's parents and destroyed the village." Naruto froze, 'in shock' at the revelation. "You were sealed up by the hokage that you admire and-"

"Stop it!" Iruka repeated vainly, Mizuki going on as if uninterrupted.

"And you have been lied to by everyone! Didn't you find it odd how everyone hated you?!" Naruto didn't have to try as hard as he thought he would to force tears down his cheeks, Mizuki reminding him too well of the negativity he's had to endure over the years. Mizuki only continued grinning, grabbing one of the large shuriken on his back as he continued to shout.

Mizuki started spinning the large shuriken in his hand. "Iruka is the same! HE ACTUALLY HATES YOU!" Naruto only ground his teeth in frustration. "Nobody will ever accept you!" Naruto was prepared to block the large shuriken thrown his way, a kunai waiting in his sleeve to be thrown at Mizuki, when Iruka again interfered by knocking him down and taking the projectile to his back.

Naruto didn't have to fake the shock this time, staring up at Iruka in wide-eyed horror, a drop of his warm blood leaving a trail following the path of one of his whisker marks. "..._why?_"

"My...my parents...after they died...there was no one to compliment me or acknowledge me...I was so sad...I would always act like an idiot to get people's attention, since I wasn't able to do well in things like school, I'd get attention that way...it was better than being nothing, so I kept acting like an idiot...it was so painful." Tears began to cascade down Iruka's cheeks, dropping down onto Naruto's own and cleaning of the drop of blood that had fallen previously.

"Yeah... Naruto, you must have been in a lot of pain too. I'm sorry, Naruto. If I had done a better job, you wouldn't have had to feel like this." At that moment, the blond wanted nothing more than to tell Iruka he was wrong, that just treating him normally was enough, that he wasn't in so much pain anymore.

Naruto wanted so badly to tell him that he had found precious people...and that Iruka was already one of those people, but now wasn't the time. Right now the whiskered jinchuuriki had a mission to do. He swallowed once, a look of determination crossing his face when he glanced at Mizuki...and then ran off into the woods.

_'Gotta lead the traitor-teme away from Iruka...or at least distract him by running away with the scroll since Iruka-sensei has been getting in the way so much, even though his intentions are good at heart...' _The blond had been running for a few minutes when he suddenly received the memories of two kage bunshin he'd made almost as soon as he was out of sight of Iruka and Mizuki.

Many colorful and inventive curses about stupid traitors and meddlesome teachers left his mouth as he came to a sudden stop and turned on his heel, darting in the direction that his kage bunshin had last seen the two. Of course Naruto made it just in time to hear Mizuki accuse the blond as being the same as the traitor, a statement that had the jinchuuriki growling under his breath.

"If you use the skills in that scroll, you can do whatever you want. There's no way the demon fox wouldn't try to use that power." Kurama, who had been rather quiet for a while, started up again.

_**'WHAT THE HELL IS WITH ALL THESE RIDICULOUS ASSUMPTIONS ABOUT ME?! WHERE IN THE FLYING FUCK DOES HE GET HIS INFORMATION?! WHY WOULD I BE INTERESTED IN YOUR PALTRY TRICKS WHEN I CAN CAUSE EARTHQUAKES AND TSUNAMIS WITH A FLICK OF MY TAILS, BITCHES?!'**_Naruto only sighed internally at how worked up Kurama could get sometimes, focusing instead on the conversation at hand, wondering when the best time to jump in would be.

"Yeah...the demon fox would do that..."

_**'SERIOUSLY?! THE FUCK IS WRONG WITH THESE FLESH-BAGS?! DO THEY KNOW ME ON A PERSONAL LEVEL?! FUCK NO! ALL I DID WAS KILL A BUNCH OF THEIR FAMILY AND COMRADES! YOU THINK THESE LOSERS WOULD GET OVER IT ALREADY, I MEAN THEY LIVE IN A FUCKING NINJA VILLAGE, THE HELL DID THEY EXPECT?! SUNSHINE AND RAINBOWS?! YOU DON'T SEE THEM GETTING PISSED AT SOME OTHER VILLAGE FOR ATTACKING THEM AND KILLING A BUNCH OF PEOPLE! WHO DOES KONOHA THINK THEY ARE? IWA?!***'**_After realizing that the fox wasn't going to stop rambling anytime soon, Naruto elected to start tuning him out.

"...but Naruto is different. He's...I've acknowledged him as one of my excellent students. He may not take things seriously...and he's clumsy so nobody accepts him...he already knows what it feels like to have pain in your heart." Iruka's voice became more solid and determined as he went on.

"He was never the demon fox...he is a member of Konoha...He's Uzumaki Naruto!" Naruto's knuckles had gone bone-white, his fists shaking as he stood and listened to his sensei verbally acknowledge him. The chaos of emotions he felt inside him was something he'd only ever felt when Sasuke had said something very similar to him when he'd told the Uchiha the truth.

"Okay, whatever." Mizuki's voice had Naruto getting straight back to mission mode, suppressing his feelings for the moment. "Iruka...I said I would take care of you later, but I've changed my mind." Naruto tensed, seeing the traitor grab his other large shuriken and begin to spin it. "Hurry up and DIE!" Naruto growled again, this time louder.

_'Not while I'm here, he's not!'_ Naruto immediately shot forwards, his forehead colliding with Mizuki's so fast that the traitor didn't even see it coming. Naruto clicked his tongue in irritation when pieces of broken metal fell from his forehead, his headband having shattered from the impact. He ripped off the black cloth, tossing it aside. _'You'd think those things would be more sturdy...or maybe I used a little too much strength...'_

Mizuki got up shakily, glaring death at the whiskered blond. "...you should not have done that." Naruto only straightened, knowing that the teme was all talk no bite.

"Don't touch Iruka-sensei," he glared at Mizuki, throwing in a little killing intent, "**or I'll kill you!**"

"You idiot! Why'd you come out?! Run away!" Naruto resisted the urge to sweat drop or let his face fall from its serious expression.

_'Gee you're welcome, Iruka-sensei. No big deal, I only JUST SAVED YOUR LIFE.'_

"Shut up!" He shouted at Iruka before turning to me with a cocky grin. "A punk like you, I'll kill in one shot!" Naruto only continued glaring, making a single seal with his hands.

"Try it, trash! I'll return the pain a thousand times over!" This only seemed to anger the traitor.

"THEN DO IT, DEMON FOX!" Naruto needed no further prompting.

"Kage bunshin no jutsu!" He said it mostly for Iruka's sake as he could actually perform the technique without saying...and without the hand sign, but he kept up the act for the sake of theatrics. Thousands of clones popped into existence, so many that some were perched on the trees all of them grinning down at Mizuki.

"WHA?! What's going on?!"

"What's wrong?" All the clones asked. "Weren't you going to kill me with one shot?" Some snickered when Mizuki could only fall on his ass in shock. "Well then," all the Naruto's began to roll up their sleeve or pound their fist into their hand, "why don't I start things off?" All that could be heard for the next half hour was the sound of Mizuki's screams of pain, ones that left the original Naruto very satisfied, times one thousand since he dispelled all his clones.

Naruto scratched the back of his head as he took in Mizuki's beaten body at his feet. "I think I may have gotten carried away..." He stared at the bloody pulp for a moment. _'Well at least I left him alive...and it'll be much easier for the T&I to break him after this.' _Iruka jumped when an anbu suddenly appeared out of nowhere.

"Ah, Cat, I was wondering when you'd show up. The target's alive and been disabled and the scroll is safe, though there were some..." he spared a glance to a confused Iruka, "complications." Cat only nodded as she took the scroll from Naruto and slung Mizuki over her shoulder.

"Thank you Uzumaki-san. Please make your way to the hokage tower to submit a verbal report. You will receive your pay then." Naruto gave a sharp nod and with that, the anbu vanished just as quickly as she'd come. Iruka only sighed at the interaction, having guessed at what happened and brushing off Naruto's behavior as being unpredictable like usual.

"Naruto, come here. I want to give you something." Naruto tilted his head quizzically at Iruka before complying. "Close your eyes for a second." Naruto was confused, but did as he was told, trusting Iruka. After a few moments, Naruto couldn't help but ask.

"Sensei, now?"

"Okay, you can open your eyes now." Naruto did so, immediately seeing Iruka's smiling face, his headband missing from his forehead. "Since yours broke pretty quickly. Try not to break this one too soon alright? Anyways, let's celebrate with a bowl of ramen! I'm sure the Hokage can wait for a little bit!" Naruto felt his cheeks heat and his lower lip quiver with happiness.

**_'Tch...there goes my entertainment... Hey, I wonder if the old hokage would let you watch that traitor's interrogation if you asked.'_**Naruto ignored the fox in favor of giving Iruka an unrestrained hug, extremely happy at the meaningful gift and remembering Iruka's acceptance of him, of his acknowledgement.

"Ack! Hey that hurts!" Iruka shouted half-heartedly.

* * *

"...and then Cat came to take away Mizuki and the scroll." Naruto kept the part of his little moment with Iruka...and them proceeding to Ichiraku's to himself. He'd save the telling of that for Sasuke. _'Man, Otouto's going to be so jealous that I got to do an A-ranked mission straight out of academy.'_ The hokage seemed mildly impressed.

"Well done, Naruto. You managed to learn the kage bunshin and handled the situation as well as you could with Iruka there. Here's your pay for the mission. Try not to spend it all on ramen." Naruto took the proffered scroll eagerly, knowing he'd be able to buy some very nice new equipment for his fuinjutsu, because that equipment was seriously expensive.

"No problem, old man! See ya later!" Naruto shouted as he ran off to tell Sasuke, leaving the Hokage chuckling to himself as the orange ball of energy left. After a period of silence in the office, the hokage discreetly looked around before opening his first desk drawer and taking out a worn orange-cover book. He opened it to where a page was leafed and began to giggle pervertedly, his cheeks becoming slightly pink as a trickle of blood dribbled down his nose.

The anbu currently on duty sweat dropped at their hokage's actions, all thinking the same thing. _'Shouldn't the hokage be doing his paperwork?'_

* * *

"So Mizuki turned out to be a traitor." Sasuke stated blandly. "Doesn't surprise me. I never liked him anyways. He was one of the teachers that tried to constantly sabotage you. I wish I could have kicked his ass myself," Sasuke muttered darkly. Naruto only rolled his eyes at the Uchiha's protectiveness.

"If you had kicked his ass, Otouto, there would be nothing left for the T&I department to work with." Sasuke only smirked.

"Damn right there wouldn't be." Naruto smacked him lightly on the back of his head, making the Uchiha grunt and send his brother a half-hearted glare as he rubbed the sore area.

"What have I told you about killing anyone that shows me signs of disrespect?" He looked away, mumbling his answer sulkily.

"Not to as long as they're not physically harming you or trying to take your life..." Naruto nodded in approval as he began to clean up the table, Sasuke doing the same as they finished their little graduation party.

"Good, besides we should be more focused on whatever test our jonin sensei is going to throw at us." Sasuke only shrugged as he started wiping down the table while Naruto started with the dishes in the sink.

"It's not like we can plan anything until we know _where_ the test is going to take place and if we'll have enough time to prepare at all. We'd also have to take into account who our third member will be." Both shuddered at that, knowing just which kunoichi they might have potentially ended up with.

"Have I ever told you how glad I am you told that pink haired banshee you don't like 'know-it-alls'?" Sasuke nodded.

"Only after every time we see and hear her screech." It was a hasty, panicked decision on their part when they found out that the rookie of the year was placed with the dead last and the person with the second highest score and since the one that fit that profile at the time was Sakura, they had made a plan immediately to change that.

The plan itself was rather easy, all Naruto had to do was ask a well timed question to what he thought of girls who tried too hard to get perfect scores on every test. Sasuke had responded that he didn't like know-it-alls that flaunted their intelligence, something Sakura had been trying to do to impress Sasuke. The effects were immediate as Sakura soon found herself slowly becoming in the low high scores of the class, purposefully getting some things wrong in order to show her 'Sasuke-kun' that she wasn't one of those girls.

"...well as long as it's not Sakura. Anyone is better than Sakura." Naruto smirked as he finished washing the dishes, Sasuke placing the rag in the empty sink.

"Even Ino?" He questioned teasingly. Sasuke only grunted.

"At least she actually trains occasionally. Sakura barely has enough chakra to be considered a genin." Naruto nodded, acquiescing Sasuke's point.

"Well, we'll see at team assignments. We'll plan after we factor in our teammate and the test."

"Then we'll pass and you can finally stop wearing that horrendous orange jumpsuit and start acting more like yourself." Naruto pouted at the jab to his outfit.

"I'll have you know that this jumpsuit provides fantastic stealth training and I happen to like the color orange." he winced when he looked down at his clothes. "Just...not as much as this." Sasuke only chuckled at his aniue's response.

"Don't worry, you'll only have to wear it for a little bit longer. Just a few more days and we'll both be able to show the village just how wrong they were about you." Naruto only smiled at the Uchiha's statement, surprising Sasuke by suddenly flicking his nose. Naruto smiled warmly at him and spoke before Sasuke had the chance to.

"Thanks, otouto.****" He sent a confused glance at his brother while rubbing his smarting nose, already used to Naruto randomly flicking his nose sometimes.

"What for?" Naruto only laughed at his inquiry.

"Don't worry about it." Sasuke's perplexed expression only served to make Naruto laugh harder. He knew everything would work out fine, as long as Sasuke was on his side. _'The next few days are going to be interesting at least.'_

* * *

***He has weights on like Lee does, except he uses seals instead so that it's easier to add weight and to deactivate them on the fly. I was saving gravity resistance seals for when he got older since he'll explain much later that they would have affected his growth if he had put them on when he was younger.**

****Okay, I know some of you might be confused and/or irritated at Kurama's sudden appearance, but hear me out before you bite my head off. Naruto's been meditating since he was around, what 8-10 years old? He'd been practicing becoming more intimate with his chakra through control training and stuff so of course Naruto would discover Kurama sometime while he was meditating. As to their chummy relationship, well in canon, they don't become friends until much later in the series and that's after a lot of stuff happens. When you think about it they didn't exactly make very good first impressions and they didn't exactly have time to chat seeing as Naruto was in danger, but Naruto here met Kurama while he was meditating so not only was he aware of Kurama, he was also in a peaceful state of mind and in no immediate danger or need to be elsewhere. So instead of Naruto demanding rent from the 'demon fox' Naruto was more interested in finding out more about the Kyuubi and this is what impressed Kurama and led to their eventual friendship though Kurama would deny it and simply call it a partnership. I will go more in depth as to what this means for Naruto's abilities and may even have a flashback to when they first met, but until then I hope this explanation is satisfactory.**

*****If you don't already know, or just don't get it. Naruto's father, the Yondaime near single-handedly ended the third shinobi war by killing a lot of Iwa-nin with his hiraishin. Ever since Iwa has hated the Yondaime with a passion even though it should have been expected that people get killed in a war.**

******For those of you who don't understand why Naruto is thanking him, he's simply thanking Sasuke for caring about him enough to feel insulted for him and wanting him to get the respect he deserves. I know it's a little cheesy but you really have to keep in mind that Naruto's really not used to that kind of attention. Sure the hokage and Ichiraku's care for him, but they don't get as defensive over small things like Sasuke does and they're really just not as close. That's also the reason why Naruto got all emotional when he heard Iruka acknowledging him as Uzumaki Naruto rather than the kyuubi. The hokage showed him that someone could care about his safety, Ichiraku's showed him that someone could treat him indiscriminately, and Iruka showed him that he could be acknowledged as himself rather than what he holds, but Sasuke showed him that he could be more than acknowledged. He could be respected for his skill, he could trust someone completely, he could become more than just a comrade to those precious to him. He could have a family, someone who supports him and someone he can support in return. He cares about the others mentioned like family, he does, but he doesn't trust them completely, or more like he can't, unlike with Sasuke. Just wanted to clarify how I'm interpreting Naruto's bonds... **

c-(=_=) Finally done with the Mizuki incident. Sorry there's not much detail, but it's mostly just following cannon with a different perspective and my OOC Naruto. Sasuke also didn't have much of a part in this, but he should get more screen time in the next chapter, team assignments and the team test and all.

If anyone has any questions, suggestions, or comments, please feel free to pm me or leave a review. They would be much appreciated and thanks for reading my story at all, also much appreciated. (TTvTT)


	4. Ch 4 Formation of Team 7

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.

AN: Before I get started on team selections I'd like to say thanks to .kitten for helping me decide the team placements and giving some ideas that I'm going to use later, having to do with certain characters' skills and such, so thanks again (^-^)

* * *

Naruto watched his surrogate grandfather in amusement as he examined Naruto's ninja registration paper carefully as if trying to find any kind of fault in the picture. The picture in question was rather average, if one thought that Naruto giving that squinty-eyed foxy grin with his hands behind his head was average (which they did.)

The only abnormality that the hokage could see in the picture was that Naruto had taken off his orange jacket so he was left with his black t-shirt. The hokage gnawed on his pipe in worry, unused to Naruto not pulling anything funny. Naruto's knowing grin at the moment wasn't helping either.

"What's the matter, Jiji? Something wrong with my picture?" He asked innocently, though his posture spoke anything but. Naruto's jacket was still unzipped, not having bothered to do so after putting it back on and his right elbow was resting on the back of the chair he was sitting on as he took up a decidedly lax position, his left leg stretched out in front of him.

"Er, no, no. I'm just a little surprised you didn't...well I don't know, didn't paint your face in some ridiculous design or something...I'm still kind of waiting for something to happen. You don't have a prank planned do you Naruto?" _'Why else would Naruto seem so complacent? He must be planning something!'_

Naruto only smirked at the sandaime. _'Ha, I've made him so paranoid about my pranks that all I have to do is not pull any for a while to make him nervous.'_ Naruto snickered. "No, Jiji, I don't have any pranks planned. The Hokage monument was me going out with a bang. I'm on vacation from my pranking king title." The sandaime was unconvinced, only serving to further entertain the new genin.

"Well, I'm glad you've taken this document..." he looked at the grinning picture of the blond, "...somewhat seriously. This ninja registration book lists all those in the village with high abilities...so it's an important document." Naruto just waved his hand flippantly.

"You worry too much, Jiji." Naruto's attention turned to the door when he heard it creak open, someone running in with a shuriken in their hand, causing Naruto to take action before he could stop himself. In a split second, Naruto had a kunai against the throat of whoever was stupid enough to attack the hokage.

Naruto's eyes widen at the squeaky yelp of shock that came from whoever he was apprehending, immediately realizing his mistake. The one he held in his arms was a small boy no older than eight wearing a ridiculously long scarf and holding a wooden shuriken.

"Hey, put me down stupid!" Naruto's eyebrow twitched at being called stupid by an eight year old.

"Brat! Let go of Hokage-sama's grandson!" Naruto turned a cold glance to whoever had yelled at him from the doorway, seeing a tall man wearing sunglasses, probably a jonin. Naruto got defensive immediately, a little embarrassed that he attacked a harmless kid. He only got angry as well when the kid spoke up again.

"Go ahead, punch me."

"Shut up! The kid shouldn't have barged in here with clear intent to attack Jiji! It's the kid's own stupid fault!" He defended, his cheeks flushed in anger and embarrassment as he whacked the kid on the head. "I don't care if the hokage's your grandmother! Don't do stupid things!" Naruto stormed out, still reprimanding himself over his own stupid mistake. Kurama's laughter wasn't helping any either.

* * *

_**'Hey, kit. You got yourself a stalker and I'm not talking about the Hyuga.'**_Naruto rolled his eyes.

_'I know. He's been following since we left the tower...'_ Naruto watched from the corner of his eyes as the kid ran from behind a wall to behind a pole, _'...and he really sucks...' _The blond was starting to lose his patience with the brat so he decided to just get it over with, turning around to confront the kid.

"Why the hell are you following me, gaki?" A tick mark appeared on Naruto's face when the kid only poorly disguised himself against the fence with a camouflage sheet...one he was holding sideways. "What the hell is that?! You aren't fooling anyone!" The kid only chuckled.

"Impressive of you to see through this...The rumors about you are true." Naruto sweat dropped.

_'Anyone could see through that sorry excuse for a-wait, what rumors?! There's more than the demon fox, pranking king, orange wearing idiot?' _The kid then had the audacity to point at me all cocky like.

"Hey, I'll let you be my boss!" Naruto raised a brow.

"Excuse me?"

"In exchange..." he suddenly got really excited, "teach me that 'sexy no jutsu' you defeated Grandpa with! Please! Please boss!" Naruto thought about it.

_'Well, he did manage to say please...and it would be funny as hell to know that Jiji was being tormented with the jutsu by his own grandson.' _Internally, both Kurama and Naruto shared an evil grin.

_**'Do it.'**_Naruto nodded in agreement.

"Alright, gaki. I'll teach you." He watched in amusement as the boy began to shout and jump up and down in celebration.

Meanwhile, back at the hokage tower, the sandaime felt a horrible sense of foreboding.

* * *

Naruto recoiled when the kid turned into another horrendous broad. "Ugh, no! You have to make her waist thinner and the face has to be heart-shaped, more beautiful!" After a few more failed attempts, Naruto decided to give the kid a short break, both for him to catch his breath...and to save Naruto's eyes from anymore frankengirls.

"So, why do you want to defeat your grandfather?" He asked as he brought his drink up to his lips.

"My name is Konohamaru. Grandpa named me after the village, but even though everyone here is used to that name... nobody ever calls me that." Naruto's eyes widened a little at that. "When everyone sees me or calls me...all they see is the hokage's grandson." Konohamaru's brows furrowed in frustration and anger.

"Nobody sees me as me and I'm sick of it. That's why I want the hokage name."

_'Well becoming hokage won't exactly fix that since people would only switch from hokage's grandson to hokage, but...'_ But Naruto knew what it was like to not be acknowledged for who he was, he knew better than anyone.

"Stupid. Who would acknowledge a brat like you?" Konohamaru's head snapped up.

"Huh?!"

"The hokage name isn't so easy that a gaki like you could take it." He glared at Naruto.

"What?!" Naruto only rolled his eyes.

"It's not that easy, idiot. Hokage, hokage," he said mockingly, "if you want the title so much, then..."

"Then what?!" He shouted. Naruto only gave a mean grin to the kid, determination hardening his eyes.

"The you have to defeat me first!" The kid gulped, thoroughly intimidated, when the jonin from the tower decided to barge in.

"I've found you." Konohamaru whirled around in shock while Naruto gave an annoyed sigh, having sensed him coming. The jonin jumped down from the tree branch he was on. "Now, young master, let's go home." Naruto didn't missed the cold look the jonin had sent him before jumping down.

_'So, he's another kyuubi-hater, huh? The teme's lucky Sasuke wasn't here to see that. I know I warned him and all, but Sasuke still finds ways to hurt them somehow...'_

"No! I'm going to defeat Grandpa and get the hokage name! Right now! Don't get in my way!" Naruto sweat dropped as Konohamaru started to perform the sexy no jutsu.

_'He's still saying that? What happened to the declaration I gave a while ago?' _It seems that the jonin had been rambling on about something when he finally realized what Konohamaru was doing.

"Take this! Sexy no Jutsu!" The jonin's jaw dropped as Konohamaru returned to normal from the perky, naked brunette woman he'd turned into. "Huh? It didn't work..."

"Wh...WHAT A VULGAR SKILL! I am a gentleman! Such a low-class skill will never work against me!"

Naruto stood there, watching the two. _'A closet pervert, eh?'_ The jonin began trying to drag Konohamaru away by his scarf.

"Young master, if you hang out with the likes of him, you'll just turn stupid!"

_'Excuse you?!'_

"Just do what I say! I am your easiest short-cut to becoming hokage! Now let's go home!" Konohamaru struggled valiantly against the pull.

"NO!" Naruto only grinned, knowing just what jutsu to use on the idiot who dared insult him.

_'This jonin will be the perfect guinea pig for my new jutsu.' _"Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!" Naruto yelled out to capture their attention, a bunch of Narutos covering the field.

"Wow! That's incredible!" The jonin only scoffed, smirking as he got into a fighting position.

"How foolish, I am an elite tutor. I am not Mizuki." All the clones did in response was make the same hand sign.

"Transform!" Once the smoke cleared, it revealed a bunch of naked blond chicks clinging onto the jonin. "Harem no Jutsu!" It didn't take very long for said jonin to get blown back by his massive nosebleed. Naruto grinned as he dispelled them all and the transformation.

"Dammit! I couldn't even defeat my tutor!" Kono cried indignantly. "I really want a name that people will acknowledge! Yet why?!" Naruto just bonked the kid on the back of the head.

"It's not that easy, dummy!" He put his fists on his hips, reprimanding the boy. "This is the Hokage title, the name of the greatest ninja in the village. The path to becoming stronger is painful...and I often second-guessed myself...but I finally found people that would accept me, though even that was incredibly difficult." Naruto turned away, looking at the hokage monument.

"You better prepare yourself."

"Prepare?" Kono asked naively.

"If you want to gain the name of Hokage...being hokage isn't about being acknowledged. You must be acknowledged before you can become hokage...and to be hokage you have to be ready to lay your life on the line to protect the village, to protect your precious people, and to protect the people you don't even know, the ones who failed to acknowledge you before."

Naruto turned to the kid with a grin. "There aren't going to be any shortcuts!"

"Bah!" Kono turned away himself. "Stop lecturing me as if you're important." A tick mark appeared on Naruto's head. "I'm not letting you be my boss any longer!" He turned around again. "From now on... we're rivals!" He gave Naruto a toothy grin, one Naruto returned with a warm smile.

"Sorry, gaki, but starting tomorrow, I'm taking my first step as a ninja. But hey, one day I'll fight you for the hokage name." Naruto's warm smile grew a little wider. "I'll be looking forward to it...Konohamaru." The kid saluted Naruto as he turned to walk away, the blond only waving back lazily as he made his way back home.

* * *

Sasuke took a sip of his tea, glancing at Naruto washing the dishes before returning to the scroll he was reading. "So the Hokage's grandson became your lapdog?" The blond sent the Uchiha a scolding glare.

"_Konohamaru_. _Konohamaru_ is not my lapdog." Sasuke just scoffed as he put down his tea.

"Well you can't honestly tell me you actually consider the brat your rival." Naruto smirked in amusement as he dried his hands with a towel, walking over to the table and propping his head on his hand, his arm propped on the table as he examined Sasuke's poker face.

"Is that jealousy I detect, otouto?" The Uchiha reddened slightly, sputtering a bit before shouting instant denial.

"Wha-?! No! I just think that you deserve a better rival than some spoiled, snot nosed kid!" Naruto only laughed at the disgruntled Uchiha, flicking his nose affectionately.

"Don't worry, otouto, I know that you're my one _true_ rival. Konohamaru won't take my attention away from you." Sasuke's entire face turned tomato red at Naruto's teasing statement whether in embarrassment or anger or both, holding his nose with one hand. He slammed his free hand against the table as he stood, Naruto laughing the entire time.

"Aniue! That's not funny!" Of course, his reaction only made Naruto laugh harder. Though Sasuke was irritated and embarrassed, he couldn't help but feel pleased that Naruto had acknowledged their rivalry and assured that Naruto wasn't going to ditch him for some other little brother.

Not that Sasuke thought he would, but he knew the effect that his aniue had on people and was afraid that Naruto would abandon Sasuke when he found other friends, made other bonds, taking his light with him, and leaving Sasuke alone in the dark again. That thought alone frightened Sasuke more than anything, the only thing worse than that was the thought of Naruto getting killed or dying.

Those were the two things that Sasuke feared the most, above even his fear of not being able to avenge his clan. He feared the loss of his best friend and his morbid thoughts, along with past experience, made him very possessive of Naruto*. The Uchiha wanted nothing more than to lock Naruto away somewhere and never let him out, but not only would Naruto kick his ass if he tried it, Sasuke knew he couldn't do that as much as he actually wanted to.

Sasuke knew, better than anyone, that Naruto was going to create bonds, he was so selfless, but that also meant there would be people that would try to use that selflessness, try and destroy his light and that's what Sasuke decided to focus on. He decided to stay by Naruto's side, even if Naruto himself forgets about him, Sasuke will never stop protecting Naruto from anyone that wants to hurt him, he will continue to grow stronger to protect him...because Naruto was Sasuke's very important aniue.

* * *

Naruto yawned as he laid back on the chair, Sasuke's lips twitching in amusement at the blond's languid actions. Naruto only eyed the Uchiha lazily, amused at the 'cool, brooding' face he puts on in front of other people. Of course the peace was interrupted when the bubble gum princess walked up to him and started her banshee cries.

"Naruto! Move your ass! I wan to sit there!" The blond sweat dropped and sent a glance to Sasuke who looked the same, but if you looked closely(or were Naruto) you could tell he was angry at Haruno for yelling at his aniue and a little nervous at the girl's eagerness. Naruto gave a languid smile, leaning forward on the desk as if preparing to get up.

"Well, since you asked so nicely, Sasuke what do you think?" Naruto grinned when he saw the panic flash through Sasuke's eyes at the prospect of having to sit next to the screeching fangirl. Sasuke's hand shot out, roughly grasping Naruto's upper arm and firmly keeping him in place. He sent a harsh patented Uchiha glare at the poor pink haired girl.

"Haruno. Find someplace else to sit," he stated coldly, making the girl's eyes widen and water slightly before she walked away. Sasuke only sighed in relief when she turned, making the blond snicker behind his hand. Sasuke sent a more irritated glare at said blond. "Not funny, aniue," he said under his breath as he returned to brooding.

Naruto's entertainment was short lived and by the time Iruka had entered, both boys were bored out of their minds. Usually the two had more patience than this, they would have to since they have both been hiding their true skills, Naruto his true personality as well, but it was also _because _of that reason that they were now impatient.

They have been waiting to graduate the academy almost as long as they've been in it, all for the sole purpose of being able to show their true skills, their true colors, and not be hindered by the civilian council in any way and now that time was finally here and every second seemed like an eternity. So of course the two were abnormally happy to see Iruka walk into the room.

"Beginning today, all of you are ninja, but you are still merely rookie genin. The hard part has just begun."

_'Straight into the pep talk I see,'_ Naruto thought, amused.

"Now, you will soon be assigned duties in the village. So today, we will be creating three man teams and each team will have a jonin sensei. You will follow that sensei's duties as you complete the assigned duties." Kurama decided something was funny and started snickering to himself.

**_'Ha, duties. you'd think they'd choose a better word to use when they talk to a bunch of prepubescent brats.'_** Naruto internally sweat dropped.

_'I'm more concerned that you were juvenile enough to laugh at that...but you do have a point, missions could have worked just as easily...'_ Iruka looked at his clipboard.

"We tried to balance each team's strength." While the rest of the class exclaimed in shock, Naruto and Sasuke straightened, hyper focused on whatever was going to be said next. They ignored teams 1-6, "Next, team 7...Naruto Uzumaki," the two perked up at his name, "Sasuke Uchiha," the two only smirked at each other and pounded the side of their fists together, "and Hinata Hyuga." The two looked at each other, silently communicating.

Naruto sent a questioning glance at Sasuke, who only shrugged in response, signaling that it was okay, before Naruto turned to look at the bright red Hyuga, giving her a friendly smile, only for her to faint at the sight of it.

"Oops," Naruto whispered. Sasuke only sighed and shook his head when he caught the interaction.

"Team 8 will be Sakura Haruno, Kiba Inuzuka, and Shino Aburame. Team nine is still in circulation so Team 10 will be Shikamaru Nara, Choji Akimichi, and Ino Yamanaka." Naruto groaned and slammed his head against his desk when Sakura and Ino started to complain...by yelling. Thankfully Iruka continued, a strained smile on his face.

"Okay...this afternoon we'll introduce the jonin senseis. Take a break until then."

* * *

Sasuke was nervously chewing on his riceballs, looking around every now and then. Naruto had run off as soon as Iruka had given them the go ahead, and that more than anything worried the Uchiha. _'What is Naruto up to?'_

* * *

Naruto at that moment was henge'd as Sasuke, trying to hold back snickers, as he silently watched Sakura sitting on the nearby bench, sending gaga eyes at him as he leaned against a tree across from her in a cool guy pose, sending her a smirk. After thinking enough time had passed, he straightened and made it look like he was walking away, internally snickering when the girl lowered her head dejectedly, sighing.

_'I know this is a little bit of a cruel prank, but I'd rather get my petty revenge here than out on the battlefield and accidentally get her killed if our teams ever work together...' _Naruto smirked, catching her attention. "You sure have a large, charming forehead. Makes me want to kiss it." Naruto allowed a small smirk and light blush to color the henge's cheeks. _'Ugh, gag! Someone kill me...maybe this wasn't such a good idea.'_ He looked down at her hopeful, blushing expression, before crushing them again.

"Just kidding. That sounds like something a loser would say." He smirked for real when she looked down, dejected again. _'...or maybe it really is a good idea.'_ "Sakura, there's something I want to ask you. What do you think of Naruto?" _'Stupid, morbid curiosity, I know the answer's not going to be good.'_

The girl pouted, looking straight ahead. "He's always getting in the way of my love...and he enjoy's seeing me struggle...Naruto doesn't understand anything about me, he's just annoying. All I want is...for you to acknowledge me." Naruto had been amused at first, seeing how she wasn't technically wrong, but his eyes widened at the last part, especially her choice of words. "I'm serious. I would do anything. Because I like you..."

Naruto flinched when she started leaning closer, disgusted when she closed her eyes and puckered her lips. _'She doesn't know the meaning of acknowledgement.'_

* * *

Meanwhile a little ways away, Sasuke suddenly got a terrible feeling in his stomach. "Ugh, Naruto sense tingling. Aniue did something stupid again." Sasuke quickly finished up his onigiri and ran off to find Naruto, wondering what he did this time.

* * *

Back with Naruto, who was at this point shaking with ill-hidden disgust, but not wanting to blow his ill-thought out prank by releasing the henge, instead turned away from the pucker-lipped banshee, now shaking at the close call. He stood abruptly.

"What's wrong?" Naruto didn't even look back as he responded.

"I'll...be right back." _'Not! Hell no I'm not going back to play sucky face with the pink haired banshee, ugh, gross. Worst prank idea ever. It looked so much better in my head.'_ He thought as he ran off, dropping the henge when he was out of sight. Naruto simply decided to cut his losses and go find Sasuke so they could go back to class together.

* * *

Cue Sasuke making it to Sakura's location. Sasuke looked around, ignoring the girl until she decided to make her presence known.

"Oh! Sasuke-kun, you're so shy. Are you ready now? I sure am!" Sasuke just gave her a strange look, before returning to scanning the surroundings.

_'What the hell is she talking about? No, it doesn't matter.' _"It's time to go. Where's Naruto?" Sasuke was sure he felt Naruto around here somewhere. Haruno only laughed forcibly.

"...Don't change the subject...who cares about Naruto? All he does is bug you." Sasuke only gave her a cold stare, watching her in disinterest as she crossed her arms and nodded her head as she spoke, like she thought she knew everything.

"Well, he hasn't had a normal childhood. He doesn't have any parents." Sasuke stiffened at that, Sakura not noticing, moving her hands in a 'what can you do?' motion like she thought she was better than Naruto. "He can do whatever he wants. If I acted like him, my parents would get so mad at me." Sasuke glared daggers at her, but she still didn't notice. "He's so lucky, all alone, parents never getting on his case. That's why he misbehaves so much."

"All alone..." Sasuke muttered darkly.

"Huh?" She asked stupidly, making Sasuke angrier at her.

"The sorrow of having a parent yell at you is nowhere near what he feels." Sakura became flustered at his cold attitude, not that he cared.

"What's this...all of a sudden..." Sasuke only sent her another cold Uchiha glare, this one much more severe and laced with KI.**

"You're annoying." Sasuke didn't even bother seeing her reaction as he walked away, back to the academy since Naruto probably went back by now. Sasuke was actually pretty proud of himself for not doing anything drastic like causing the little bitch bodily harm, especially after what she said about Naruto.

* * *

Naruto was walking back to the academy, having decided that Sasuke had probably gone back by now, when he saw said Uchiha in the distance. He jogged to catch up to him before calling out a greeting. "What are you doing here, otouto?" Sasuke only smirked at him.

"I could ask you the same question." Naruto only gulped guiltily and looked away.

"Oh you know, eating my lunch, going to the bathroom...normal stuff." Naruto really didn't want Sasuke to know about his failed prank, especially because he had henge'd into Sasuke for it. Naruto was sure that he'd laugh at the failure as soon as he was done being mad about it. Sasuke just gave him a look that said he was unconvinced before stuffing his hands in his pockets and looking ahead.

"Hn." Naruto looked back at Sasuke with a grin, prank forgotten.

"I thought I got you out of the habit of saying that?" Sasuke only smirked.

"Hn." Naruto rolled his eyes.

* * *

Naruto groaned against the desk. "I can't believe this guy! Everyone else already left with their senseis. We've been here for hours~." Sasuke and Hinata couldn't really attest to Naruto's complaining since it was true. Naruto suddenly straightened, raising his hands in exasperation, startling the other two in the room.

"That's it! If this guy doesn't come in the next few minutes," he said as he stood and set up a chalkboard eraser at the door, "I'm going to make him my test subjects for all the pranks I've had lined up for when I had free time," he finished menacingly. Both Hinata and Sasuke shivered at that, knowing that the lame prank he was pulling now would only be a precursor to much worse things to their poor sensei in the future if he didn't show up soon.

Hinata twiddled her fingers together as she tried to speak to her idol***. "N-N-Naruto-k-kun, a-are y-you sure t-t-that a j-jonin will f-fall for t-that?" Before Naruto could respond, the jonin decided that it was finally time for him to make his appearance, the eraser perfectly landing on the jonin's gravity-defying spiky hair and making the three genin stare at the masked, lazy looking jonin in shock...at least before Naruto burst out laughing.

"Hahaha, I can't believe you fell for that!" Hinata was also amused, but was more worried about her idol getting in trouble because if his little prank.

"N-Naruto-kun..." she managed to mumble. Sasuke, however, was not amused at all, his brows furrowing in consternation.

_'This is our jonin? He doesn't seem very reliable...at least he didn't glare at Naruto like everyone else. He must be one of the ones that are neutral towards him,' _Sasuke thought with some relief, having silently worried whether or not their new sensei would treat Naruto well. The jonin put a fingerless-gloved hand up to his masked chin, his head tilted up slightly and his one visible eye closed into an upside down u shape, as if smiling with his eye.

"Hmmm...how can I say this? My first impression is...I don't like you guys," he deadpanned. The three genin sweat dropped at this.

"You think he's mad?" Naruto stage whispered to Hinata, who fiddled with her jacket's zipper.

"I-I think h-h-he's m-mad..." Hinata mumbled. Sasuke nodded sharply.

"He's totally mad," Sasuke agreed with the same stage whisper and brooding expression and this time it was the jonin's turn to sweat drop at the three, since they could clearly hear them 'whispering' to each other.

* * *

"Hey look his hair is still white," Naruto indiscreetly whispered to his teammates.

"Do you think he was too lazy to wash out the chalk?" Sasuke murmured back.

"M-m-maybe it's j-just n-naturally l-l-like that?" Hinata whispered back. Sasuke scoffed.

"No way, he probably dyed it." Now it was Naruto's turn to add his input.

"Maybe he's actually just older than he looks?"

"Ohhh," the other two replied as if they figured something out, once again making the jonin sweat drop.

"Okay, let's begin with some introductions." The jonin stated, his arms crossed as he leaned against the railing of the building.

"W-w-what d-do you w-want t-t-to know?" Hinata asked timidly. Sasuke and Naruto shared a long side glance after looking at Hinata, both thinking that they were going to need to fix that and soon. The cyclops jonin shrugged.

"How about...likes, dislikes...dreams for the future, hobbies...stuff like that." Naruto leaned forward, resting his head against his hand, his arm supported by his knee.

"Hey, hey, why don't you introduce yourself to us first?!" Sasuke nodded in agreement.

"It's only proper manners." Hinata followed up.

"Y-yeah...y-you look r-rather s-s-suspicious..." Her two teammates snickered and smirked at that, both sending her an approving glance.

_'Maybe, it'll be easier to help her get out of shell than we thought.'_ Both Naruto and Sasuke thought.

"Oh...me? My name is Kakashi Hatake. I have no desire to tell you guys my likes and dislikes. Dreams for the future? Hmm...well, I have a lot of hobbies..." All three genin shared the same thought.

_'All we learned was his name...'_

"Now it's your turn, from right to left, go." Naruto straightened, fingering his head band.

"I guess that's me! My name is Naruto Uzumaki. I like cup ramen, gardening, training, hanging out with Sasuke, and meditating! What I like even more is Ichiraku Ramen, especially when Iruka-sensei or Sasuke are paying! What I dislike is waiting 3 minutes for the cup ramen to cook, rapists, traitors, and people who can't see things as they are." Kakashi was getting caught by surprise every time he finished a sentence. At first he started out like a ramen loving idiot, but then he said one thing that makes the jonin think otherwise.

"My dream is to be acknowledged by the village and surpass the hokages." He stated proudly. "Hobbies...pranking, gardening, cooking, hanging out with Sasuke, meditating, painting, and calligraphy!" Kakashi gave up trying to figure out the blond enigma, scratching his head and sighing.

"Next." Sasuke glanced at the jonin coldly, his hands together and in front of his face****.

"My name is Sasuke Uchiha. There are tons of things I dislike, especially fangirls. I like to train, Naruto's cooking, hanging out with Naruto and I don't want to use the word 'dream' but I have ambition; to help Naruto achieve his goals, the resurrection of my clan...and to find a certain man." Kakashi's eyes widened at the first part of Sasuke's 'ambitions.'

_'The last bit I fully expected, but I didn't realize that Sasuke was so devoted to Naruto that seeing his dreams come true has become one of his 'ambitions'.'_ He crossed his arms in thought. "And lastly, the girl." Hinata stared shyly down at her twittering fingers, embarrassed at having been put on the spot.

"M-my n-n-name is H-Hinata H-H-Hyuga. I l-l-like zenzai*****, cinnamon rolls, f-flowers, a-a-and m-my i-i-idol. I d-dislike c-crabs, s-shrimp, bullies, and the H-H-Hyuga clan's c-caste s-system. My d-dream is t-to r-raise my s-s-self c-confidence, m-make my f-f-father p-proud, a-and unite t-the m-main and b-branch f-f-family in t-the H-H-Hyuga clan. M-my h-hobbies are t-to press f-flowers a-and t-train."

All three guys stared at the girl in awe. Her entire introduction had passive aggressive jabs at the Hyuga clan in it and it didn't even seem like she meant it to be mean, she was only telling the truth! Kakashi quickly got over his shock, or rather hid it, and eye smiled at the girl.

"My how very ambitious of you!" He sighed and crossed his arms. "Ok! That's enough of that. We will start our duties tomorrow." Sasuke's and Naruto's eyes sharpened at that.

_'So it's tomorrow. Good, then we have some time to prepare.'_ Naruto grinned. "YAY! DUTIES!" He saluted Kakashi. "What kind of duties?! Duties! Duties!"

"First we are going to do something with just the four of us."

"What?! What?!" _'Dear kami I can't wait until tomorrows test is over. I can't keep acting excited all the time...'_

"Survival training," the jonin stated lazily.

"Survival training?" Naruto parroted.

"W-w-why is t-training o-our d-d-duty?" Hinata asked timidly.

"I'm your opponent, but this isn't normal training."

"Then! Then! What is it?" Naruto was getting irritated at the jonin for dragging this on, only to get more irritated when the cyclops actually started chuckling.

"W-what's s-so f-f-funny, s-sensei?" Kakashi only smiled and flippantly waved a hand at them.

"No...it's just that...when I tell you this, you guys are gonna flip." Naruto raised a brow at him.

"Ha? Flip?" The white haired cyclops then leaned forward dramatically.

"Of the 27 graduates, only 9 will be chosen as genin. The rest will be sent back to Academy. This training is a super difficult exam with a failure rate of over 66%." Sasuke sweat dropped, Hinata paled, and Naruto put on an exaggerated face of shock and horror. "Haha, I told you you'd flip."

"What the hell?! But we worked so hard...then what was the point of graduating?!" Naruto protested vehemently.

"Oh...that? That's just to select those that have the chance to become genin," Kakashi stated casually.

"What?!" Kakashi ignored Naruto's outraged cry.

"Anyways, tomorrow you will be graded on training ground. Bring all your shinobi tools. Oh, and skip breakfast or else you'll throw up." He took out three sheets from somewhere in his vest and walked over to them. "The details can be read on this printout. Don't be late tomorrow." As soon as we grabbed the papers, Kakashi shunshin'ed away in a puff of smoke.

As soon as he was gone, both Sasuke and Naruto gave equal cheshire cat grins.

"Hey, Sasuke."

"Yeah, Naruto?"

He waved around the sheet in the air. "Looks like we have the time and the place." Sasuke smirked.

"Now all that's left is the planning." Naruto turned to look at a confused Hinata.

"Hinata, wanna help us strategize for the test tomorrow?" The blue haired girl blushed and looked down, twiddling her fingers.

"O-ok." Naruto only gave a wide grin.

"Cyclops-sensei won't know what hit him."

* * *

***Though I think it should be obvious, I feel I have to explain why Sasuke is so possessive if Naruto. After Sasuke's entire clan was massacred by Itachi, Sasuke had kind of sworn revenge and was mourning his family, but unlike in cannon, he wasn't allowed the chance to develop the thought process of believing that creating bonds would only get in the way of revenge. Keep in mind Sasuke and Naruto were eight when they met and it happened pretty recently after the Uchiha massacre, so Naruto befriended him at an opportune time. Sasuke is understandably protective of his only precious person in the village. Seriously, even in cannon, he's not attached to anyone in any way until he joins team 7. Sasuke's also afraid of losing Naruto, though he'd never admit it out loud, because he's already seen his entire clan killed before his eyes and he doesn't want the same to happen to Naruto. At the same time Naruto is the one that saved him from his grieving and loneliness, kept him from becoming consumed with hatred and revenge, so he sees Naruto as the light in his life(I swear it's not SasuNaru) and as an Uchiha he's naturally selfish and doesn't like to share with others, but for Naruto's sake he's willing to let it go, and let him go, but Sasuke will always make sure Naruto's safe no matter what it takes.**

**** I just wanted to say that I'm going to abbreviate killing intent to KI from now on, nothing important this time.**

***** In my story, Hinata's not going to have a crush on Naruto, sorry NaruHina fans. Hinata only has feelings of admiration and respect for Naruto and later those feelings will grow into sisterly love so they're going to be like family. I'd also like to say that I will slowly fade out Hinata's stuttering as Sasuke and Naruto help her grow more confident, but it won't be an immediate thing unless I decide to only summarize their weeks of training together rather than write it which I actually might do...**

******For those of you who might be confused about Sasuke's behavior, let me clarify for you. Sasuke only acts open and expressive around Naruto because he respects and trusts his aniue, but to others, he's the same cold douche-y Sasuke he is in canon so try not to think that he's having severe mood swings or something...**

******* Zenzai is just red bean soup, for those of you who were wondering. **

Alright, bad news guys. My laptop's charger died on me a while ago. I borrowed my brother's laptop to finish this chapter up and I'm planning on starting the fifth, but I only have an hour and that's just not going to cut it. I wanted you to know since I don't know when I'll be able to go out and buy a new charger so it might be a while. I'm really sorry about this, but I'll try my best to get it by at least this weekend, if not I'll borrow my brother's laptop again to tell you it might take longer or hopefully just use it to write chapters if I get enough time. So until then (TT^TT)


	5. Ch 5 The Bell Test

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto

* * *

"Do you think it's enough?" Naruto asked the Uchiha as the munched on some onigiri.

"I think multiple pitfalls, wire nets, explosion seals, and rope traps is enough," Sasuke said dryly.

"N-not to mention t-the t-t-team attacks w-we p-p-planned out." Hinata added as she finished up her own food.

"Yeah, I guess you're right. I'm jus a little antsy about going up against a jonin. I can't believe that lazy looking guy is actually the Copy Cat ninja, son of the legendary White Fang of Konoha, and one of its many prodigies graduating academy at 5, becoming chunin at 6 and jonin at 10 and anbu at 13! If I didn't know for sure exactly where I got that bingo book, I would have thought it was fake or something." Naruto babbled uneasily.

Sasuke's brow furrowed. "He does seem better than Itachi on record, " Sasuke admitted, "but he must have been a jonin for a while and that means it's been a while since he's been an anbu and he doesn't exactly look like he constantly trains to keep up his strength. Hopefully him having gotten lazy as a jonin has decreased his strength a bit and it's not like we're entirely helpless either." Sasuke stated, trying to build up their confidence.

"I-I-It's a-also not u-uncommon f-for e-elite j-j-jonin l-like him t-to be d-defeated b-by a w-w-weaker opponent. I-I-It happens a-all the t-time in t-the n-ninja w-w-world." Naruto smiled at his two teammates.

"Yeah you guys are right! We got this one in the bag!" He exclaimed, pumping a fist in the air before thrusting it out to the other to. "To victory!" Sasuke only scoffed and smirked at the blond, Hinata blushing and giving a small smile as the two touched their fist to his.

"To victory," the two said in unison. Naruto turned to Hinata with an encouraging smile.

"Hey! You didn't stutter that time!" Before Hinata could stutter out a response, Kakashi finally showed up...three hours late.

"Hey guys, good morning!" He said as he waved lazily at the three. A tick mark appeared on Naruto's head and he stood up, angry.

"You're late!" He huffed and pointed accusingly at the man. "Is this going to be a regular thing with you?!" He ignored the outraged blond and pulled out a timer from somewhere, placing it on one of the three wooden logs in the clearing and pressing the large button at the top.

"Okay, it's set for noon." The three genin stared at Kakashi in confusion as he took out two small silver bells from his pocket. "Here are two bells. Your task is to take them from me before noon. Those who cannot get a bell by noon...get no lunch. I'll not only tie you to one of these stumps, but I'll eat right in front of you." Kakashi's eyes widened the slightest bit when none of them seemed as bothered as he thought they'd be.

"Oh? Did you guys ignore my orders and eat breakfast?" He questioned.

"N-n-no," Hinata stuttered.

"We didn't eat breakfast," Sasuke stated.

"You just never said anything about eating some snacks when we got here," Naruto finished smugly. Kakashi only eye smiled, his eyebrow twitching in irritation.

_'These brats are kind of annoying...'_ He held the bells up a little higher. "You only need to get one bell. There are only two so one of you will definitely be tied to a stump and the person who doesn't get a bell, fails. So at least one of you will be sent back to academy." The three genin's eyes hardened at that, not wanting to get sent back.

"You can even use any weapons you want. You won't succeed unless you come at me with intent to kill." Hinata let out a small gasp at that.

"B-b-but, S-sensei! Y-you'll g-get h-h-hurt!" Naruto laughed and gave a foxy grin, his hands going behind his head.

"Yeah, you're so slow you can't even dodge a blackboard eraser! We'll kill you!" Obviously Naruto knew that wasn't true, but until they passed this test, Naruto was still under the jurisdiction of the civilian council and showing his true self before he could ascertain whether or not they had a chance of passing could end catastrophically for him.

"In the real world, those with no talent bark the loudest. Calm down..." He sighed. "Well ignore Mr. Dead Last and start when I say..." A tick mark appeared on Naruto's head, as well as Sasuke's. Both knew that it was necessary for Naruto to pretend to be dead last in order to be on the same team, but that didn't mean Naruto liked it rubbed in his face and Sasuke hated anyone that disrespected Naruto.

Naruto grit his teeth and grabbed a kunai from his holster at academy level speed, preparing to throw it when he saw Kakashi run up behind him and put a hand on his head, the other holding his hand with the kunai in it against the back of his neck. _'So this is his speed. At least I could see him move...'_

"Slow down. I haven't even said start yet." Naruto saw Sasuke about to blow a gasket at how the jonin had handled his aniue, but Naruto only shook his head minutely, telling Sasuke that now was not the time to attack. Sasuke grit his teeth, but otherwise complied, still tense however.

"Well it seems like you're prepared to come at me with intent to kill. So you've finally acknowledged me?" He chuckled. "Seems like I'm beginning to like you guys. Ok, let's get going. Ready..." Everyone tensed, ready to spring. "Start!" The three genin all leapt away to meet up nearby while Kakashi jumped in the opposite direction.

* * *

"S-so n-n-now we s-start the f-first ph-ph-phase, r-right?" The other two nodded.

"To test his skills and see what we're up against." Naruto specified. Sasuke smirked.

"Good job getting a head start on that before the test even started, Naruto. Now we know his speed." He turned to Hinata. "I know Naruto and I were able to at least see him move, but what about you, Hinata-san?" Hinata fiddled with the hem of her jacket.

"I-I was a-a-able to k-keep up w-w-with it u-using m-my byakugan." The two boys nodded in approval.

"Good, then testing his strength would be next." The three stiffened when the jonin chose to speak.

"The basics of a ninja are to hide yourself well." Naruto smirked at this, making the other two look at him questioningly.

"Guys, I got this in the bag." Naruto immediately jumped out in the clearing, crossing his arms as he faced Kakashi. "Come and fight me!" When all the jonin did was look at him as if he was amazingly stupid, Naruto shouted again. "I said fight me!"

"...Umm...You're a little bit off." He stated blandly. Naruto started to charge him, glad he hadn't taken off his weights yet so he would be at academy speed.

"The only thing off about you is your haircut!" Naruto stopped midway in his charge when the jonin reached into his weapon's pouch, entirely defensive rather than trying to attack.

"Ninja fighting lesson number 1. Taijutsu, I'll teach you about it." Naruto's brows furrowed.

_'If he's going to teach taijutsu, why is he going for a weapon?' _Naruto's question was quickly answered when, rather than a weapon, the jonin whipped out a book with an orange cover, a look of mock seriousness on his face as he did so. Naruto nearly fell over in shock. _'Icha Icha Paradise?! That porn trash that Jiji reads?! And this guy's reading it in public! Great! We have a pervert as a sensei!' _

"What's wrong?" He asked. "Hurry up and come at me."

"But...hey, hey! Why do you have a book?" He didn't even look at Naruto as he talked, reading his book instead.

"Why? Well because I want t read what happens next. Don't worry about it, it won't make a difference against you guys." Naruto's brow twitched. Sure, the goal was to be underestimated, but just like being called a dead last, he didn't like it being so blatantly rubbed in his face.

_'This guy just had to be a __smartass, too, huh?' _Naruto growled and lifted his sleeves angrily. "I'LL BEAT YOU TO A PULP!" Naruto jumped high, going for a back punch, Kakashi blocking it with a single hand, not moving anything else and still reading that trash. Naruto growled and followed up with a high kick from his right leg, only for the man o squat down and dodge, his eyes never leaving the book.

_'I don't think we're going to be able to test his __strength beyond his speed and dodging skill...we should have expected that he would only be testing us.' _Naruto went for a wide haymaker, the jonin disappearing and reappearing behind the blond, his hand in a tiger seal. Sasuke paled from his hiding spot.

_'That seal is common for fire ninjutsu!' _Sasuke didn't care about the jonin finding his hiding spot, figuring he already knew where they were anyways. "Naruto, get out of there now!" Naruto didn't need to be told twice, promptly switching with one of the many shadow clones he'd created beforehand, making sure the process didn't create the smoke a substitution usually did.

"Hidden Leaf Ancient Taijutsu Supreme Technique, A THOUSAND YEARS OF PAIN!" Naruto winced as he made his way to Sasuke, his clone having dispelled a the first contact of the jonin's fingers up his...well yeah... Sasuke, however was torn between anger and irritation, coming to the quick decision to be both.

"Our sensei is an idiot," Sasuke stated without remorse. Naruto didn't disagree with him, rubbing his backside at the phantom pain.

"Well this guy definitely has a twisted sense of humor that's for sure." A tick mark appeared on the blond's head when the jonin began to blush slightly as he turned the page of his book, laughing at whatever he was reading. "This pervert is getting on my damn nerves. Let's see how he'll do against multiple opponents."

Naruto tossed two shuriken at at the jonin who, of course, easily caught the two and spun them on two fingers, still reading the book. "Not just a clone, but a shadow clone. The skill that creates not just n illusion, but multiple real bodies of yourself. It must have taken a lot just to maintain that shadow clone you substituted with. Was that your last resort plan?" Naruto only smirked as eight shadow clones popped out into the clearing, all charging at Kakashi.

"Oh? You were able to make more? With your abilities, about a minute is probably your limit with this. No matter how many you line up, you're still Naruto. You can't beat me with that jutsu." Naruto only continued grinning, a ninth shadow clone having managed to sneak up behind him and grab him to keep him still.

"What?! Behind me!" Sasuke sweat dropped at Kakashi's shocked exclamation.

"Do you get the feeling that he's faking it?" Sasuke mumbled. Naruto's brow twitched when one of his clones went in for a punch, only for Kakashi to have substituted himself with one of his clones and leaving the clearing. The clones then started to attack each other, thinking one of them was Kakashi henge'd into Naruto.

"What could have possibly given you that idea?" Naruto questioned dryly. As they continued to watch the brawl, Sasuke decided to comment on something.

"Hey Naruto," Sasuke called, one of the clones having figured out they could dispel and pointing it out to the others.

"Yeah, Sasuke?" Naruto asked as his clones called each other stupid before starting to dispel.

"Have you noticed that your clones seem...less intelligent than you? They also seem to have taken on your mask persona." Naruto sighed heavily as all his clones dispelled, leaving the clearing empty of all but one clone and revealing that Kakashi really had left.

"I think it has to do with me splitting my chakra, my soul. The less chakra they have, the smaller the part of my soul, the less intelligence they receive from it. It seems that thanks to me having acted like the dead last the majority of academy, they've literally taken on that persona." Sasuke sweat dropped when the remaining clone spotted a bell on the ground near a tree and went for it, only to get caught in the obvious rope trap, hanging by his leg.

"It's kind of scary to think that you might have ended up like that if we hadn't met." Naruto pouted as he watched kakashi come up and retrieve the bell.

"I would not have ended up that stupid and loud," Naruto muttered rebelliously as kakashi lectured his clone.

"A ninja must be able to read what's underneath the underneath."

"I know that stuff!" The clone yelled.

"Umm...I'm telling you because you don't," Kakashi remarked blandly.

"...at least I don't think I would have," Naruto mumbled in defeat. When Kakashi shunshin'ed away, leaving the clone hanging, literally. Both Naruto and Sasuke stayed there silent for a moment.

"He's been pretty lucky about not triggering any of our traps so far." Sasuke nodded in agreement. "Do you think Hinata'll be alright? He may not be at the level he was before, but Hatake is still a powerful opponent."

"We'll win, aniue. We have to," Sasuke stated severely, before taking a deep breath and calming his nerves a little. "Besides, Hinata made sure that nay path leading to her will ensure that Hatake run into at least one trap." As if on cue, there was a shout that was promptly drowned out by an explosion.

Sasuke smirked in victory. "See?"

* * *

Kakashi sighed in relief as he looked down at the log he had substituted with in order to escape the explosion seal trap, all that was left of it was ashes. Cold sweat ran down the back of his neck.

_'If I hadn't noticed the glowing of the trigger seal I had stepped on, I would be in intensive care for the next three days.' _Kakashi closely examined the nina wire that trapped the victim in the circle of trees which used to be littered with camouflaged explosion seals. _'I wonder if this was a leftover trap from some jonin or anbu that used this practice ground...rather careless of them to forget to deactivate it before they left. One of my genin could have gotten killed...hmm I'll bring it up with the hokage later. For now I have to go check up on the Hyuga.' _

Oh, Kakashi, you'll find out soon enough.

* * *

Hinata had brightened slightly when she had heard the explosion.

_'Yes! I managed to make him walk into a trap. It may have been the path with only one trap in it, but it was the one with the most explosion seals in it...I'm glad I didn't let my teammates down...my idol.' _Hinata would have blushed at her little accomplishment if she didn't catch sight of Kakashi with her byakugan. Only for him to reappear behind her.

Hinata quickly whirled around, ready and waiting in the Gentle Fist position. _'I won't let Naruto and Sasuke down!'_ Hinata rushed at the jonin who tried to catch her by surprise managing to close two of the tenketsu in his shoulder* before he substituted again with a log, one that was quickly decimated by Hinata's fast gentle fist strikes.

She sighed in disappointment at herself when she stopped, taking deep breaths to regulate her breathing and try and lessen her heart rate. _'Ohhh...I only managed to get two of his tenketsu...I hope Sasuke and Naruto don't get to mad at me...' _The poor girl sighed as she went of to regroup with her two teammates, leaving behind a slightly pained Kakashi.

_'Maybe it was't the best idea to sneak up on a Hyuga and try to capture her in a genjutsu, even the most timid one. I can't believe she managed to actually hit me...I wonder why her clan thinks she's so weak? She's had her byakugan on since the test started and she's pretty fast with her taijutsu as well and she's only slightly winded from all that chakra use...Ah well, on to the broody little emo.'_

* * *

"I-I-I'm s-s-sorry, g-guys. I-I-I c-c-could o-o-only c-close t-t-two of h-h-his t-tenketsu." Naruto only grinned at her.

"Are you kidding, Hinata? You just managed to hit an elite level jonin and you're apologizing? Don't! That's awesome!" Hinata's eyes widened at the encouragement, blushing profusely. Sasuke nodded in agreement, crossing his arms, his eyes closed.

"Yeah, at least with even a bit of his chakra blocked and in some pain, it'll be harder for him to use chakra for jutsu and his moves might be restricted." He smirked at the Hyuga. "Good job." She managed a small, warm smile, her chest becoming as warm as her face as her teammates praised her for her accomplishment.

"Th-thank you." Sasuke only turned away.

"Hn. I don't need thanks for telling the truth." Sasuke smirked while Naruto grinned and Hinata smiled. Their little team bonding moment was interrupted when they heard the snapping of taut strings breaking in the distance. Naruto laughed.

"Looks like he found our ninja wire." Sasuke smirked.

"It also seems like it's my turn to fight him.

* * *

Kakashi mentally cursed whoever had set all these traps. He looked down at his clothes, small tears scattered everywhere and the edges of his poor Icha Icha were cut, thankfully Kakashi managed to cut the wires with his kunai in order to escape the elaborate ninja wire web, only to have to avoid a volley of kunai and shuriken that had resulted in him cutting a specific wire. As a result, Kakashi had to be careful of which wires he had to cut, lest he be skewered by the traps within traps.

_'How in the hell did these kids not trigger these traps...unless...could it be..._they _were the ones to set these?!...Nah! These traps are easily jonin level. Naruto's the dead last, Hinata's too timid for such viscious traps and the Hyuga only focus on their taijutsu anyways and Sasuke may be the rookie of the year but he's still not at a high enough level to pull these off. Obviously it was some irresponsible jonin, probably newly promoted or something...yeah that's it.' _Kakashi caught sight of Sasuke in the clearing ahead, his back turned.

"Ah, Sasuke-kun." The Uchiha turned to face him. "The strength of the village's number one, the Uchiha Clan." He turned a page. "This should be interesting." The two stared each other down for a moment before Sasuke sprung into action throwing three shuriken at the jonin and causing him to leap aside.

"Such obvious attacks are pointless," He remarked as he put away his book, only to hear the sound of a rope snapping. He looked to the sound and saw that one of the shuriken had cut a rope. "A trap?" He leapt away in time for a bunch of knives to embed themselves into the bark of the tree that was behind him. As soon as he landed, Sasuke had appeared behind him, about to give him a high kick. _'What?'_ Kakashi quickly blocked the kick with the back of his hand, the metal plate there, absorbing some of the impact.

Kakashi used his other hand to grab the Uchiha's ankle, but the Uchiha used the jonin's firm to steady himself enough to throw the jonin a punch and when that was gripped by the jonin's other hand, readied himself to kick the pervert with his free leg.

The upwards motion that Kakashi used to block the kick, had Sasuke upside down and his face at level with the jonin's torso, the bells tied to his side in view and in reach of his one free arm. His hand shot forward, his fingertip brushing one of the bells, only for Kakashi to throw him away and out of reach of the bells.

"Well, I'll acknowledge that you're better than the average genin." Sasuke only scoffed and began made two hand signs, pulling his chest back and taking a deep breath.

_'Great Fireball Technique!' _

Kakashi's eyes widened at the hand signs. "What?!" _'A genin shouldn't have enough chakra to use that jutsu!' _

* * *

Naruto and Hinata both tensed when they saw the large fireball.

"Looks like it's time to stop messing around, huh, Hinata?" Hinata nodded, determination shining in her eyes.

"Y-yes, Naruto-kun. T-time to f-f-fight t-together." Naruto grinned, tossing aside his cumbersome orange jacket.

"Let's get wild!"

* * *

Meanwhile, Sasuke had stopped the stream of fire and tensed when the jonin was nowhere in sight. _'Where? Left, right, behind, above-'_

"Below you!" Naruto shouted as he tackled Sasuke aside just as Kakashi burst from the ground. Kakashi's eyes widened at Naruto having saved Sasuke.

"Wha-" Before Kakashi could finish, Naruto was already charging at Kakashi, but his speed had increased exponentially, having released his weight seals. Kakashi grunted when he crossed his arms to block a powerful kick from Naruto, actually being pushed back from the impact. He didn't even have a chance to dodge when his fist dug into his side, making the jonin fly into a a tree trunk, the tree cracking under the pressure.

Kakashi was ready to jump back into the fray as the smoke from his landing cleared, but was stopped from doing so when Sasuke sent a volley of flaming shuriken his way forcing him to jump back. Hinata was attacking him before he could even land, closing his tenketsu left and right, making him drop to the ground like a useless sack of potatoes.

Kakashi grunted when he fell face first into the dirt. He was about to speak up when he felt a quick jab delivered to the back of his neck, knocking him unconscious. The three semi-panting genin, more exhausted from the adrenaline and excitement than anything all silently gazed at their unconscious sensei before looking at each other. Naruto took a deep breath and quietly took the two bells from the jonin's side, holding them up for his teammates to see and causing them to smirk and smile.

"So who wants lunch?"

* * *

The silver haired jonin groaned as he slowly regained consciousness, his eyes cracking open blearily. "Ohhh, what hit me?"

"That would be Mr. Dead Last Mr. Elite Jonin." Kakashi's eyes snapped open as he remembered just what happened before he was knocked out. He sweat dropped when the three genin were sitting on a blanket eating bento in front of him. His eyes widened as he registered that he was tied to a post and for some reason he couldn't move anything below his neck.

He looked down to find a slip of paper on his chest. The Uchiha was the one who spoke next. "That's a temporary paralysis seal. Unless we take it off, you won't be able to move for about an hour or so." Kakashi decided to hide his shock and confusion, opting to ask questions...a lot of questions later. He eye smiled at the trio.

"Well, I must say that you three very much impressed me. I can see you also have the bells. Wo did you decide to send back to the academy?" He questioned. Sasuke scoffed and cut the ropes with a well thrown kunai, pulling off the seal with a ninja wire he had attached to it. Naruto tossed Kakashi the two bells, not bothering to look away from his food to see if he caught them.

"No need to continue the test, Kakashi-sensei. We know the test is about teamwork. You've been giving us hints since you told us about it yesterday. You said only nine genin would pass and that there was a low rate of success. Then when we got here, you told us the objective, two bells, three genin. The goal was to separate us and you even said that no matter what, one of us was going back to academy, but..." Naruto paused to drink some tea from his canister.

"But we've never heard of a three-man cell. The academy seriously emphasizes teamwork, hell, it's what Konoha is known for." Sasuke continued for Naruto. Hinata finished up her lunch and delicately put down her chopsticks.

"You a-also t-told N-Naruto-kun's c-c-clone to l-look 'underneath t-the underneath'." Naruto nodded.

"There was also no way that a normal genin could get the bells from you, much less defeat you. The only chance at any of us getting our hands on the bells would be to work together...so we did." Kakashi eye smiled again.

"I see you've realized the true meaning of the test." He stood up, brushing himself of before placing his hands in his pocket. "Well in that case, you guys...pass!" The three brightened at that, Naruto jumping up and pumping his fist in the air, grinning from ear to ear.

"ALRIGHT! We're officially genin!" Hinata only sighed in relief and happiness, her cheeks flushed with it, while Sasuke smirked cockily.

"I told you we'd pass." Kakashi chuckled at the three before silently walking to the stone nearby, catching the genin's attention.

"I want to show you guys this, the numerous names carved on this stone...these are ninja who are recognized as heroes of the village." Naruto's eyes widened as he recognized the stone from some scrolls, his hands clenching into fists. "But these aren't just normal heroes...they are all heroes who died while on duty." Kakashi placed his hand on the stone, his back to his respectfully silent genin.

"This is a memorial...my best friend's name is also carved here...I'm glad you guys got the true meaning of the test. A ninja must see underneath the underneath. Those who break the rules and codes of the ninja world are considered trash...but you know what? Those who abandon their comrades...are worse than trash." The three genin found a newfound admiration growing for their sensei after he said that...

"Alright! That ends the training. All of you pass!" He turned and gave them all a thumbs up. "Ok! Starting tomorrow Team 7 will begin it's duties!"...one that was quickly subdued by their sensei's quirky attitude.

* * *

"No, a little to the left." Naruto instructed.

"Like this, boss?" His clones asked. Naruto closed one eye and held out his thumb, trying to see if the scrolls were level.

"I think it's good, Sasuke what do you think?" Naruto asked, turning to the Uchiha, who was currently putting away the ink and brushes. He looked up at their two new scrolls, one with the phrase 'Look underneath the underneath' with Naruto's jinchuuriki seal painted beneath while the other had the quote 'Those who break the rules are trash, but those who abandon their comrades are worse than trash' with a painting of the Memorial stone beneath it.

Both were collaborative efforts between the two, Sasuke doing the calligraphy while Naruto added the illustrations. He stared at them a little longer before answering and returning to his task. "They're level, aniue. Just put them up so we can eat already." Naruto just sighed and did so, dispelling his clones as soon as they were done.

"You're so impatient today. I'm surprised you were able to write them out so nicely."

"Hn." Naruto was about to chew him out for his snippiness since they passed, but Sasuke had started talking. "I just want tomorrow to come already. I mean it's the day you can finally stop wearing that mask and actually wear something practical. We can finally start to really train again as soon as Hatake sees our true skill level." Naruto just smiled.

"I know, otouto. I've been waiting for tomorrow a lot too," Naruto suddenly brightened and grinned, "but first there's dinner, then some studying, and after an hour or two of training before we sleep!" Sasuke groaned, knowing that studying entailed politics and clan laws, and training meant fighting against Naruto and his army of kage bunshin. Needless to say, Sasuke's mind would be well diverted from thoughts of tomorrow.

* * *

***For those of you wondering how Hinata managed to even hit Kakashi at all. I'd like to say that Hinata isn't actually weak, even if she was perceived so by her family and peers and not just because of her kind and timid nature. Hinata just doesn't like hurting people so her taijutsu might seem weaker than it really is, but Hinata is really a hard worker and practices a lot in order to become stronger. So she's always been strong, but she's always been afraid of hurting people. It became a different matter when this test came into play. Naruto and Sasuke, when they brought her in on the planning at the end of the last chapter, told her about what they knew about the test and Hinata realized that if she didn't try her best she would only hold back her teammates and disappoint them and that's something Hinata really doesn't want. As to how she so guiltlessly attacked Kakashi, not showing remorse for hitting him, she doesn't exactly know anything about him besides the fact that he's an irresponsible, lazy-looking, shady ninja that is the only thing standing in the way of her and her team passing so I'd like to think Hinata would step up to the plate under these circumstances. **

I would like to let you guys know that this chapter is kind of my first real attempt at a fight scene so if it was horrible I apologize and will welcome any constructive criticism given. I would appreciate it since I'm going to have to write quite a few fight scenes for this story.

Also, I'm going to be borrowing my brother's laptop whenever I can so my updating may change from everyday to days later. I apologize again if it's the former.

Next chapter I've decided to summarize team 7's training much like I did in the beginning with Sasuke's and Naruto's, but that'll be after Naruto and Sasuke reveal their skills to Kakashi and the hokage finally confronts Naruto about how they got so powerful. So until then (=v=)


	6. Ch 6 Confrontations & a Legacy

Disclaimer:I do not own Naruto

* * *

Naruto stared at the clothes carefully laid out on his bed, only wearing a towel around his waist since he had just taken a shower. He examined the clothes carefully, as if afraid that something was out of place. It was only natural for the blond to be nervous, he had worn an orange jumpsuit for years, and for just as long that jumpsuit had defined and labelled him as a hyperactive idiot to the villagers.

It had been his shield against the villagers, against the glares and whispers, against being ignored as if he didn't exist. It protected him from the manipulating grasp of the council when he was not yet strong enough to protect himself, while he was still under their jurisdiction. It kept him from showing the villagers just how much they affected him with their mistreatment...and now he no longer had it.

Last night Sasuke had helped him clean out his closet of every last scrap of orange jumpsuit he had and helped refill it with the clothes that Naruto had bought a week prior under a henge in order to get a fair price. It was absolutely strange and foreign to Naruto to know that he no longer possessed his trusty orange jumpsuit, that he would no longer be wearing it, and that he could finally wear clothes that he actually likes. His eyes once again wandered over his chosen wardrobe.

At the top was the head band Iruka had given him, but Naruto had replaced the blue cloth with a black one that was much longer and would stop around the center of his back even when tied. Beneath that lay a zip up jacket*, black in color with three burnt orange stripes running the length of the sleeves and a thick burnt orange line indicating the two pockets on the front, lining the hem, and making up the mid-sized collar it had. The only other design besides the stripe was the Uzumaki swirl he had embossed on the back in the same burnt orange, rather than the usual red, and a small Senju clan symbol on the left side of the collar with the shape of a hiraishin kunai on the right side, both in black.

On top of the jacket was a simple black and grey mesh shirt with sleeves that ended in the middle of his forearm and a pair of fingerless black gloves with metal plates on the back, absorption and barrier seals engraved on them**. Below the jacket and mesh shirt was a standard pair of black shinobi pants. There was black tape, a three part black holster, and a white belt pouch laying next to them.

The tape was for the holster and taping the pants tight against his shins and ankles, the holster was for kunai, senbon, and shuriken, and the pouch was for smoke bombs***, paper seals, brushes and ink, scrolls, a mirror****, a small sectioned case of blood-chakra-poison-antidote pills, a bingo book, and some ninja wire. Everything else he may need, like a medical kit, rations, camping equipment, spare clothes, and books and scrolls for studying and training were sealed in other, fewer scrolls that went in the pouch.

Naruto would have sealed his weapons in a scroll as well but worried about how long it would take to retrieve them so he sealed all his weapons in tattoo seals he painted on his forearm. The tattoo itself was of Kurama, the majority of his body on the front of his forearm while his tails wrapped around the back so that only the base and the tips would show on the front. Each tip pointed to different colored swirls that contained storage seals for different weapons. When the seal did not contain anything, the color reverted to a dull grey.

Currently there was only one grey swirl, the one positioned in front of Kurama's open muzzle and supposed to be a dark purple to look as if he was about to shoot of a bijudama*****. His favorite weapon was currently leaned against the wall next to his bed...for easy access. After all, he could never be too careful.

He was pretty satisfied with his chosen wardrobe and his handiwork with his seals. All of his clothes had protective seals on the inside. Nothing short of chakra conducted weapons or high powered explosives could dirty or damage them, something he was very proud of.

Naruto took a deep breath, having taken stock of everything to his satisfaction, and decided it was time to change so he could meet up with his team. It was when he was finished changing, looking in the small mirror that was in the drawer of his dresser to take off the small clear clips he had above and behind his ear, that Sasuke decided to appear on Naruto's windowsill.

The blond only sighed as he let the side bangs he had been hiding fall to frame his face*~. "You've only been an official ninja of Konoha for one day and already you've stopped using the door in favor of just coming in through the window." Sasuke only came in and leaned against the wall, his arms crossed.

"You should talk, you come in through the window all the time." Naruto smirked as he put away the mirror and the clear clips before turning to Sasuke.

"Ah, but that's the difference, otouto. I've _always_ been coming through the window, _my_ habit has nothing to do with the fact that I just became a ninja." Sasuke flushed slightly and coughed to cover his embarrassment, walking over to the monk's spade propped next to Naruto's bed.

"Still keep your favorite weapon by your bed I see." He picked up the staff like weapon, mindful of the crescent blade at the bottom, the rings placed along the lower side of the sun spade jingle as he grunted in effort. "And the weight seals are still activated." Naruto grinned as Sasuke handed the heavy weapon to him.

"Well, it's technically only meant for exercise to begin with and the actual forms for using it are more for show than anything, that's kind of to be expected since the weapon originated from non-violent monks." Naruto resealed the monk's spade back into his arm, the grey spiral becoming the dark purple it was meant to be.

Sasuke only shrugged and looked Naruto over. "You look like a mini Yondaime." Sasuke commented. He looked at the bangs framing his whiskered face. "Those bangs of yours really help that out." Naruto smiled and tugged one of the little tails before reaching for the box he had on the bedside table.

"I see you've changed your wardrobe a little as well." Naruto saw that Sasuke had switched his high collared short sleeve blue shirt for a loose black sleeveless t-shirt with an unbuttoned high collar dark blue t-shirt with the Uchiha fan on the back. Around his neck he wore a heavy silver chain necklace with the Uchiha fan hanging in the center and resting in the center of his chest. He wore black arm gloves that started from right above his knuckles and wrapped around the base of his thumb and ended a little below the center of his upper arm, leaving a goo inch or so of bare skin until his shirt covered the rest of his arms and shoulders. There was a matching white and red Uchiha ring on his right ring finger and a black bracelet on his left wrist that had a grey metal plate with the Konoha symbol on it, his headband nowhere to be seen.

He wore loose black cargo pants and strange black shinobi sandals that were split open at the edges and gave the end of his cargo pants a slight ballooning effect since they were tucked into the sandals. White bandages were wrapped around his left thigh with a single black holster attached to it*~*. There was also a white belt pouch at his waist. Sasuke's kusanagi**~* blade was resting on his hip, the sheath white with a single black stripe running the length, only unbroken in the center of the hilt to display the Uchiha fan

Naruto just shook his head as he put the box in his belt pouch. "I feel like you're starting to abuse the Uchiha symbol."

"Hn." Naruto didn't comment on his response, opting to smirk and comment on something as they jumped put the window and began making their way to training ground 7.

"And with all the skin you're showing, I'm sure the fangirls will get a lot more viscious." Naruto began to laugh hard at the sudden paled and horrified expression that Sasuke had gotten at that.

* * *

"So would you like to tell me exactly what you're capable of? Because I know for certain that three fresh out of the academy genin should not be capable of knocking out a jonin." Naruto gave their sensei a look while Sasuke just scoffed and Hinata blushed at the indirect praise.

"Wow, Kakashi-sensei. You come three hours late and the first thing you do is start interrogating us? What, no hello?" Naruto asked, amused. Kakashi only eye smiled.

"I just want to know what my cute little genin are capable of so I can train you properly." Sasuke smirked.

"Good answer though I doubt it's the real one, but we'll talk anyways." Kakashi's eye twitched a little.

"Sasuke and I don't know what our current rank would be seeing as we've been training together since we were eight and we had no one to really compare with besides each other, but I can tell you our skills. I have three elemental affinities; wind, earth and water, with wind being my primary. I know the academy three jutsu, kage bunshin, and Earth release: double suicide decapitation, earth style wall, and rising stone pillars and for water and wind release I know water clone and great breakthrough respectively. I'm proficient in in using crescent moon knives, wind & fire wheels, a dao blade, hook swords, and a monk's spade*~**. I'm also proficient in fuinjutsu and practice a taijutsu called shaolin kung fu, however I don't my current level as I've been self taught. I'm also good at setting up traps and improvising. I think that's it..." Naruto was sure he missed some things, but Kakashi would find out about them sooner or later.

"Well, that's certainly much more than I expected. Now you're up, Sasuke." Sasuke crossed his arms as he gathered his thoughts.

"Unlike Naruto I have two elemental affinities; fire and lightning with fire as my main. I know the academy three, kage bunshin, dragon fire, grand fireball, and ash pile burning. I haven't gotten anywhere with my lightning affinity beyond crumpling up leaves with it. I recently discovered my sharing an had activated the night of the massacre and I've already learned the demonic illusion genjutsu mirror heaven and earth change and shackling stakes. I've also been able to master the Uchiha style thanks to my gaining the sharingan. I'm proficient in kenjutsu and am capable of creating simple fuinjutsu seals."

"Not as surprised as with Sasuke, but still mildly so. I'm definitely impressed, though I have to say the one I'm most impressed with is shy little Hinata." Hinata let out a cute little 'eep' and blushed cherry red when all the attention turned to her.

"Yeah, she totally kicked your ass, sensei!" Naruto exclaimed, amused when Kakashi's eye twitched slightly.

"Hn," Sasuke smirked in agreement. Kakashi just chuckled.

"Which is why I'm so impressed with her." He turned to address the flushed girl. "I've heard that you have a very kind and timid nature and it's very easy to see that your same kind nature prevents you from going all out in a fight and that may make others perceive you as weak, but yesterday you showed determination and no remorse towards hurting me because you didn't want to let your teammates down. I think you provided an exemplary performance to demonstrate the point of the test."

Hinata was trying to take deep breaths to prevent from crying or fainting...or fainting after crying. It was unfortunate, but this was the first time in her life since her dear mother passed away that Hinata had been so highly praised and encouraged for her accomplishments rather than put down for her mistakes and it was doing absolute wonders for her severely low self esteem. Hinata couldn't help the few tears that escaped her.

"Th-thank you s-so much." Naruto pat her shoulder affectionately.

"Aw, don't cry Hinata-chan! You can't cry every time we point out your accomplishments. If you did that, you'd never stop crying." Naruto's sincere statement only served to make Hinata cry harder, making Naruto panic in return. "Waah! I'm sorry! I didn't mean to make you cry harder! Aw geez please stop crying! I'm bad with people who cry!" Kakashi eye smiled at the blond.

_'Just like Minato-sensei...I'm sure the hokage will be interested to know about Naruto's skills...and his new wardrobe. He has the yondaime's hiraishin and the senju clan symbol embossed on the collar of his clothes. I could pass off the hiraishin kunai as Naruto's admiration for him, but the only reason he would put on the Senju mark is if he knows of his lineage...ah well, I'll let the hokage deal with that,'_ the lazy jonin thought as he pulled out a familiar book from his pouch.

Sasuke shook his head at his panicking aniue. "Dobe," he muttered, but Naruto still heard him, whirling around in an instant with his fist raised and an angry expression.

"What was that, teme?!" Kakashi waved his hand at the two, not looking up from his book.

"Maah, maah, calm down you two. No need to insult each other just to cheer up the pretty lady." Kakashi giggled and turned the page. Both buys turned a glare on him.

"We don't want to hear advice from an old pervert." Sasuke remarked snidely, making Kakashi's eye twitch again at being called old. Kakashi was stopped from retorting when they heard a small giggle. The three turned to Hinata, seeing her wiping away her tears and giving a small smile.

"I'm glad I'm on this team," she whispered softly, a little shy at saying such a thought out loud. All three thought the same thing at that moment.

_'Hey, she didn't stutter!'_ Naruto was the first to break out of his mild shock, taking out the box he'd packed earlier as he spoke.

"Oh, that reminds me. I have something for all of us...a little gift to commemorate us becoming a team," Naruto stated as he opened he box, revealing four simple silver bands, each with a spherical centerpiece but all with a different design. Naruto handed the one with the Uchiha symbol to Sasuke, the one with the Hyuga symbol to Hinata, and the one with a red 'no' symbol(the red circle wit a red line across it*~**) to Kakashi, and put on himself the one with the Uzumaki swirl.

"Aw, you shouldn't have," Kakashi said deadpan as he looked between the symbol and his Icha Icha knowingly. Naruto ignored him.

"These aren't just accessories. I added a lot of seals to this thing that I won't bother to explain in detail, but I will tell you how useful they can be. The centerpiece of each of the bracelets is removable and can be used as a communication device if you add chakra to it and place it in your ear. It can also be used to track each other if you add chakra to the bracelet. It also sends out a distress signal to the other bracelets if you flare your chakra or if your chakra is fluctuating wildly like it would when you're dangerously low on chakra or your chakra has been tampered with by a genjutsu or seal. It's also has a few protection seals in it so it's pretty durable." Everyone's eyes widened at the implications of just how useful the little trinket was, not to mention the time and skill necessary to create such a thing.

"My, these things will come very in handy in the future," Kakashi replied honestly. The other two just wordlessly nodded. The next few hours was simply the four working out a training schedule for the three talented genin, as well as possibly having a once a week joint training session with other genin teams in order to build teamwork and relations with people they might have to do missions with in the future. It's no surprise Naruto was the one to point this out.

After another hour of solidifying plans and schedules, the team finally decided to call it a day, knowing that real team training started early tomorrow...or at least as soon as Kakashi arrived.

* * *

Naruto sighed, massaging his temples, his elbow propped against the arm rest of the chair, his eyes closed and a slight frown marring his face. "I see Kakashi-sensei was rather prompt about reporting to you. Tell me, how long have you been on to me, Hokage-sama?" Hiruzen flinched at the honorific, knowing for certain now that he had lost the boy's trust.

"I'm afraid that I didn't begin to question your strength until the night I assigned you your first mission. That question you asked about the mission's parameters, then Cat's report about your behavior and how quickly you reacted when my grandson tried to attack me. The las was what really had me wondering just how much you were hiding from me." The wizened old hokage hesitated about saying more. Naruto gave him a dark smirk, seeing his hesitation.

He leaned his head lazily against his hand. "Worried that I might turn traitor, Hokage-sama, just like your beloved prized student Orochimaru?" Hiruzen's eyes widened at the cruel jab, tensing, his anbu guards ready to leap into action as well if necessary. Naruto's dark smirk turned bitter then. "I see. Even my own surrogate grandfather believes that I am a demon."

"NO! Naruto, no of course I don't think that!" The poor old man denied immediately. "I would never think of you as a demon, even if you let your hatred consume you, I would not blame you. This village deserves any animosity you hold towards them and I am guilty of not being able to stop you from suffering, to give you a normal childhood," the old man's shoulders seemed to sag with the weight of his burden, his image becoming much older and weaker than he really was, "and for that I am truly sorry."

Naruto's brows furrowed in anger and frustration before he took a deep breath and sighed, letting it go and giving his grandfather a small smile. "I know you are Jiji," Hiruzen brightened at the blond using his nickname, "but I want you to know that you've lost any trust I had in you. I may see you as family, but I've lost all faith in you." Sarutobi's face fell at that and he failed miserably trying not to look disappointed.

"Yes...that's quite understandable. Hopefully I will be able to earn some of that trust back after today." Naruto gave him a half smile, as if he doubted it but didn't want to hurt the old man's feelings.

"Hopefully," Naruto replied weakly. The hokage sighed, a little more hurt than he thought he'd be at his grandson's lack of faith in him.

"Before I say anything, what are your feelings towards Konoha and how much do you know?" Naruto gave another bitter smirk.

"Are you implying that you would have still kept things from me depending on my loyalty and knowledge?" Naruto just looked away when Hiruzen flinched, confirming his suspicions. " I guess even you can act like a hokage sometimes...don't worry Jiji I still plan on proving the villagers wrong and becoming hokage to protect the very ones that mistreated me my whole life. I would not stoop to their level." Hiruzen found himself flinching frequently whenever Naruto spoke, his sincerity and the not-so-subtle reminders of how the village has treated him jabbing at Hiruzen's already guilt ridden heart.

"...what do you mean 'act like a hokage?'" Hiruzen asked, morbidly curious at hat he could mean by the ill-hidden insult. Naruto scoffed.

"It's no secret that the civilian council and your own advisors have you by the balls so you can't make any moves that would have them tugging and squeezing at you." Hiruzen coughed in shame at the vulgarity and truth of the statement. "Last time I checked, hidden villages were dictatorships, not democracies. The civilian council keeps you busy, frustrated, and tired with useless paperwork while the advisors slip in papers that would grant them more power than they should have and usurp your power by doing questionable things behind your back, but you already know about that last part don't you, Jiji...Danzo."

Naruto threw three chakra laced senbon to the back corner of the room, faster than anyone could react, revealing a knocked out NE agent, his mask having fallen off when he fell. The anbu surrounded the body, weapons in hand when the Cat anbu kneeled to check his pulse.

"You killed him?" Naruto only shook his head, pointing to the senbon sticking out of his neck.

"False death state. Senbon can't kill very effectively." Naruto ignored the tensing of the anbu when he kneeled down to examine the body, immediately deactivating several suicide seals, suicide bombs, and any poison he had hidden on his person, including his mouth. It was there that Naruto found a cursed seal on the back of the man's tongue. Naruto clicked his tongue in annoyance and took out an empty scroll to start writing down the seal, ignoring Hiruzen who was looking over his shoulder while the anbu took note of everything, sending one of them to give it to Ibiki for evidence.

"That cursed seal is what has prevented us from interrogating them, it seems to stop them from speaking of anything to do with Danzo." Naruto nodded in agreement, having finished copying the seal and now writing out notes of possible counter seals, since it seemed the removal would only occur if the victim or the applier died.

"I can't fully remove the seal, but I may be able to reverse it somehow. Rather than causing them to clam up and be in pain when asked questions about Danzo, it'll cause them to blab and give them a sense of euphoria when they think of ratting him out and doing so." Naruto grinned at the idea.

"Euphoria, Naruto?" Hiruzen questioned.

"Basically it'll make them extremely happy whenever they give information on Danzo and since all of his agents have been trained to be emotionless**~**, the sudden excitement they feel may cause them to become addicted to the emotional pleasure it gives them. Pretty much, they won't shut up about Danzo if we're lucky...though it will be kind of creepy when the root member says some of the more disturbing things Danzo has done in a happy voice..." Hiruzen shuddered at that thought as the two went back to the desk, the anbu taking the root member to Ibiki to safeguard until it's possible o interrogate him.

"When do you think the seal will be ready by?" Naruto shrugged as he wrote a few more notes before putting it away.

"I don't know, a few days maybe if I get my kage bunshin to work on it while I'm busy with other things like training with my new team or studying." Hiruzen nodded in understanding as they settled themselves to return to the serious conversation before Naruto distracted them. This time Naruto took out a paper seal and smacked it on the desk, the seal glowing for a moment before returning to normal.

"Privacy seal?" Naruto nodded.

"Currently only you and I can really see or hear each other talk, the anbu area probably seeing an illusion of us talking about something entirely different."

"I see." Naruto took a deep breath.

"I know my father is the yondaime, Minato Namikaze, and my mother is the previous jinchuuriki and the red hot habanero, Kushina Uzumaki. I know that Mito Uzumaki is my great grandmother and the first jinchuuriki of the kyuubi, making Hashirama Senju my great grandfather, Tobirama Senju my great granduncle, and Tsunade Senju a distant relative. These relations would make my full name Namikaze-Uzumaki-Senju Naruto and heir to both the Uzumaki and Senju clans since Tsunade has not completed a mission or been in Konoha for more than ten years." Hiruzen huffed at hearing Naruto's entire lineage laid out.

"I see...your lineage sounds very impressive when you say it all together like that. Three of your family were hokage and the rest were or are powerful and legendary ninja." Naruto smiled at the light humor, knowing that it did sound very impressive.

"I've also known about the kyuubi and my status as a jinchuuriki long before the incident with Mizuki, having met him myself when meditating and becoming friends with him. The kyuubi and I are partners now. I would also tell you his name but neither he nor I trust you with it." Hiruzen's eyes were nearly bulging out of his sockets at this point and he was clutching at his chest as if he were close to having a heart attack. The old man took a few deep breaths, glaring at the mischievous glint in Naruto's eye at his reaction.

"I see you know everything. I suppose it's fine to give you your legacy now, though your parents wished to wait until you became at least chunin, but seeing how easily you just took down a Root member, I suppose you're strong enough to protect yourself." Sarutobi rose and shuffled over to the mantle with the pictures of the previous hokages, placing the four frames face down which caused the mantle to slide away and reveal a room full of large scrolls. Hiruzen started to pick out most of the larger scrolls, going back and forth when the bigger ones took up too much arm space. By the end there were six large scrolls, four medium sized scrolls, and five small regular sized scrolls.

Naruto couldn't help but sweat drop when they were all piled on the desk. "These can't seriously all be mine, right?" Hiruzen seemed to ignore them and started to explain the contents of the scrolls, starting with the larger, older looking ones.

"The larger scrolls are the Senju and Uzumaki clan scrolls, describing their history, jutsu libraries, alliances with other clans, and famous weaponry. The other four are summoning scrolls." Naruto's eyes bulged at that. One summoning scroll was rare enough, but owning four? "The Senju summoning scrolls are the phoenix and wolf summoning scrolls, the Uzumaki are the dragon and tiger summoning scrolls." Now it was Naruto's turn to almost have a heart attack.

_'Holy shit! This was waaaay more of a legacy than I expected...and the old man isn't even finished!' _Hiruzen moved onto the medium sized scrolls, half the size of the scrolls that were just a few inches short of his height.

"These four scrolls are a list of all the jutsu the Shodaime and Nidaime knew, the Yondaime's signature jutsu's the hiraishin and rasengan, and Minato's and Kushina's last letter to you with Minato's special kunai and Kushina's katana. The smaller scrolls are the deeds and list of properties of the Uzumaki clan compound once meant for visiting dignitaries from Uzugakure, the Senju clan compound, and your parents' family house in the suburbs." After getting over his shock of all the things he suddenly possessed, he asked about the last two small scrolls.

"What are the last two." The hokage smiled at the question.

"One has books of advanced fuinjutsu sealed in it and the other has medical ninjutsu sealed in it, including much of what Tsunade foolishly left behind which means much of her own medical jutsu and research." Naruto slumped back in his chair, almost in a state of complete shock.

"Wow...I was only expecting the suburban house and my parents' scrolls..." Hiruzen chuckled at the boy.

"Yes, well, you do have quite the legacy so it's not unusual, simply a lot to take in." Naruto let out a breathless laugh.

"You're telling me!" The hokage gave Naruto a grandfatherly smile while Naruto busied himself with sealing everything into a modified, pocket sized storage scroll.

"Try not to stress too much about your future duties as clan head to your two clans. You have to be at least a chunin to become a clan head, so you have some time to sort things out. Don't rush anything." Naruto gave the old man a grateful smile, doing something he hadn't done since his eighth birthday...rushing up and hugging him.

Hiruzen looked shocked for a moment before fervently returning his surrogate grandson's embrace. "Thanks, Jiji, for giving me my legacy." Naruto mumbled into his robes. Hiruzen pat the boy's head affectionately as the pulled away.

"I'm only sorry I didn't tell you the truth from the beginning, letting the council get in my way." Naruto tilted his head slightly.

"Speaking of, what are you going to do about them?" Naruto's eyes brightened when the old man's eyes turned steely, seeing a long dead flame being reignited in the old man.

"I think it's time that the council remember why I am called hokage and known as the 'God of Shinobi'." Naruto smirked, not feeling a bit sorry for the wrath his Jiji's will of fire is going to bring down upon the council.

* * *

***The jacket I'm describing is the same one Minato wore when he saved Kushina from being kidnapped as kids, just in a different color scheme and some added decoration(the family symbols)**

****In detail, what the seals can do; the absorption seals can absorb any if not all of the impact given depending on the strength of the attack and can even send that force back, think of the impact dial from One Piece as reference(if you ****understand the reference) except it can't return explosions, but can handle things that can slice or stab; the barrier seals can set up a barrier around the wearer or anyone nearby, the size would depend on the amount of chakra placed into it, but it's limited to about a mile in each direction from the wearer, the barrier is effective against weapons and explosions and can be effective against jutsu as long as the jutsu doesn't overpower the amount of chakra used to keep up the barrier, the activation itself can be triggered by simply adding chakra to the seal so it's fast and easy and very useful in combat. I just wanted you to know the details since he's going to be using them later and I don't want to explain in story while a fight's going on.**

*****Smoke bombs doesn't just mean a smokescreen, it could also be chili pepper bombs or poison powder bombs, obviously properly labelled so he doesn't accidentally pepper and or/poison himself or his allies.**

******No, he does not have a mirror because he wants to look at himself. Naruto is not vain. The mirror is best for when your sneaking around when you're not supposed to and need to look over a corner or something, in case you can't rely on other senses because your opponent can mask them or you've been handicapped, either way it's for mission purposes and not vanity I swear.**

*******the bijudama is a tailed beast bomb for those of you who didn't understand...**

***~Naruto had let his bangs grow out ever since he learned of the yondaime, even before he found out the man was his father. After he found out he put an effort to hiding them and even after learning henge he decided it was a constant waste of chakra to constantly upkeep a small jutsu and he didn't want to constantly worry about losing concentration to keeping it u so he just pinned them back with clear hair pins and made it look natural.**

***~* Some of you might recognize this outfit as the one the other dimension Sasuke wore in Naruto Shippuden movie 6, but with a slightly different color scheme. I just thought it'd be really funny and I laughed whenever I looked at the pics of Sasuke from the alt. universe. Don't worry though, he won't actually act like alt. universe Sasuke, it's just the clothes and Sasuke will never EVER don a rose, like ever, seriously that part about au Sasuke kind of creeped me out...after making me laugh of course. He's also wearing those arm gloves he's wears in Shippuden canon.**

****~*Basically it's just Sasuke's sword from shippuden.**

***~** It's the symbol that's known to be on the back Icha Icha Paradise covers.**

****~** For those of you wondering why Naruto is so on top of things when it comes to Root, well think about it this way. Danzo would probably want to keep an eye on Konoha's most valuable weapon and may have even attempted to kidnap him at some points(of course he'd make it seem like it was another village or some random bandits or slave traders). Eventually Sasuke and Naruto became skilled enough to notice the NE members spying on them whenever they weren't in their base and decided to catch one. Sending some kage bunshin turned into solid henge's of fruit flies to hide in the guy's hair and they have their own little spies gathering intel on Root. Of course Sasuke and Naruto had never confronted them, only giving them the slip using kage bunshin and keeping Danzo as in the dark about their abilities as Sarutobi. So Naruto knows a lot about Root, but not everything and he's never been able to find or look at the seal up close even though he knew it existed. **

I'm sorry, I didn't get to the team 7's training. The initial team meeting with Kakashi and the meeting with Sarutobi took more time than I expected, not to mention Naruto and Sasuke's little wardrobe changes, but the training will happen for sure next chapter...I hope. I kind of want to go into detail about Naruto's legacy, only certain aspects though, not everything. I hope none of you are annoyed or angry that I gave Naruto so much stuff, but seriously, with his lineage and the position he's in with being clan heir to the Senju and Uzumaki, he's really the only one who would be receiving all these things.

Also sorry about all the story notes at the bottom, there was a lot of small detail in this chapter I felt the need to address, so sorry.


	7. Ch 7 Training & First C-rank

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.

* * *

"Whoa, it says that the Akimichi, Nara, Yamanaka, Inuzuka, Aburame, and Kurama clans all swore fealty to the Senju clan upon joining Konoha. They're also allied with the Uzumaki, Hyuga, Sarutobi, Shimura, and Uchiha clans." Sasuke said as he read the Senju scroll, helping Naruto sort out his legacy. Naruto wrinkled his nose in distaste at one of the names.

"Shimura? Danzo is supposed to be allied with the Senju? That's just dandy." Sasuke gave Naruto a strange look.

"I just told you most of the major clans have sworn fealty to the Senju name and the rest are allied with you and that's all you can say?" Now it was Naruto's turn to give Sasuke a look before turning back to looking over his properties, seeing which one he'd want to live in.

"What'd you expect me to say? I'm still trying to wrap my mind around the fact that my legacy is more than two quick written letters from my parents." It was quiet for a moment before Sasuke spoke again.

"So I suppose reminding you that a clan head's responsibility towards his fealty clans involves monthly meetings to make sure they're doing okay and if not help out with whatever issues they may have and bi monthly meetings with allied clans in order to mutually help each other out would just freak you out?" Naruto growled and slammed his scroll down on the messy table.

"Dammit, otouto!" Naruto slammed his head on the table while Sasuke smirked at his reaction. "How the hell am I supposed to do this, Sasuke?" The Uchiha frowned at Naruto's soft voice. "Putting aside my fealty clans and allies, there's taking care of and maintaining the clan properties which includes shops and restaurants owned by the Senju in the village, and in turn handling the clan's finances..."

Sasuke sighed and put a comforting hand on Naruto's shoulder, making the blond look up slightly. "You're worrying too much, aniue. We've been studying like crazy since we found about your clan heir status. The fact that you know beforehand the responsibility it's going to take to be clan head makes you much more prepared than you would be if you hadn't studied. You've been preparing for this since you were 9, I think you're more ready for this than you think." Naruto listened intently and took a deep, calming breath.

"Thanks, Sasuke, I needed to hear that." Sasuke smirked.

"I know, but you also seem to be forgetting something that could help you out with all this responsibility, especially all the paperwork you're going to be getting." Naruto tilted his head in confusion, his brow furrowing.

"What?" Sasuke opened his mouth, pausing in order to raise the suspense.

"Two words, Kage Bunshin."

"..."

"..."

The sound that followed was that of Naruto constantly banging his head against the table beneath him, making Sasuke laugh loudly at his reaction.

* * *

"Aniue, all your worrying and stressing is starting to get on my nerves," Sasuke stated as he rubbed his temples. Naruto shot him a dirty look, pausing from his pacing in order to do so before promptly returning to it.

"How are you _not _nervous about telling Hinata-chan everything." Sasuke shrugged from his perch on one of the posts, twirling a kunai on his finger to relieve some boredom.

"Because I know that Hinata will keep it a secret until the truth is revealed to the village and support you in your goal to become Hokage?" Naruto's head jerked towards Sasuke as he finally stopped his incessant pacing.

"How are you so sure of that?" Naruto asked. Sasuke scoffed and leapt down from his perch, walking to the blond as he spoke.

"Ignoring the fact that Hinata practically worships you as a god," Naruto blushed and scratched the back of his head in embarrassment while Sasuke leaned his elbow on the blond's other shoulder, "Hinata is also very kind hearted and is protective of her precious people. If you have her loyalty, you'll have it for life and she'll never betray you in any way." Naruto was soon reassured...and couldn't help but tease the Uchiha.

"Oh? Sounds like someone has a crush on Hinata-chan." Sasuke didn't react like he expected.

"Yeah." Naruto choked on the air he was breathing, turning a shocked face to the Uchiha.

"WHAT?!" Sasuke only rolled his eyes and crossed his arms.

"Relax, aniue, it's no big deal. You and I both know that it wouldn't go anywhere, I don't plan on pursuing her in a romantic sense." Naruto sighed a little saddened that the first person Sasuke showed interest in was someone he could never be with.

"That's true. Besides the fact that you're from rivaling clans, you wouldn't be able to restore the Uchiha clan if your children's genes had to fight between two powerful doujutsus..." Sasuke closed his eyes, nodding in agreement, his arms crossed.

"Exactly. I decided to give up rather than suffer later. I'm just glad I caught on before it was too late. My feelings haven't really been invested in her so it'll be easy to get over her quickly," he stated analytically. Naruto raised a brow at him.

"Hey, otouto," Sasuke glanced over at Naruto.

"Yeah, aniue?" Naruto looked up at the sky.

"Sometimes you worry me." Sasuke smirked and looked up as well.

"I know, aniue, I know."

"A-aniue?" Bot Sasuke and Naruto's heads whipped to the source of the voice so fast that they almost got whiplash.

"H-H-H-Hinata-chan! H-How long have you b-b-been here?!" Naruto stuttered out much like a certain Hyuga. Said Hyuga giggled slightly at the irony.

"N-not very l-long. I-in fact I j-just got here. I c-came up to g-greet you when I h-heard S-Sasuke call y-you a-aniue...isn't S-Sasuke o-o-older than y-you by a f-few months?" Hinata asked curiously. Naruto and Sasuke only shared a look, the two shrugging in unison.

"I suppose that's as good a place to start as any for what we're about to tell you." Hinata sent them a confused glance as the two sat down.

"Might want to sit this out. It's going to be a long story." Hinata nodded, confused still, but complying.

* * *

(3 hours later)

A poof of smoke was all that signaled the three that their sensei had finally arrived. "Yo" The silver haired jonin intoned.

"You're late," Sasuke growled out in irritation. Kakashi only eye-smiled.

"Sorry, I got lost on the road of life." This having been the first time the trio had heard one of Kakashi's lame excuses, they responded appropriately, giving him disbelieving looks.

"Seriously?" Naruto asked.

"You're three hours late and that's the best you can come up with?" Kakashi ignored the two and turned to a semi-stunned Hinata.

"I see you've let Hinata-chan in on your little group."

"Can two people be considered a group" Naruto stage whispered to Sasuke. The Uchiha only shrugged. Kakashi once again ignored the exchange.

"I'm glad you decided to do so. After all, we wouldn't be much of a team if there were such big secrets between us." Naruto raised his brow at the jonin.

"Does that mean you're willing to divulge your own past, Kakashi-sensei." All was quiet for nearly minute until Kakashi suddenly clapped, eye-smiling.

"SO! Why don't we start with training now!" He chirped out all too cheerily. Sasuke clicked his tongue, his arms crossed, as he looked away.

"Tch, figures," Sasuke muttered under his breath. Kakashi put a hand up to his ear.

"What was that Sasu-chan? You wanted to run one hundred laps around the village? My, aren't you eager." Sasuke paled at that, knowing he had yet to remove his weights and he was sure Kakashi wouldn't give him the chance to. "Ah, but for now let's start out with twenty laps around the field, then we'll finish warming up and getting to the real training." Sasuke withheld sighing in relief as the three started their laps.

Kakashi chuckled and took out his book. _'Hokage-sama was very adamant about me training these three properly...I wonder how he figured out I was going to slack in the first place?'_ Kakashi shrugged mentally. _'Ah well, it's not that bad anyways. All three aren't exactly normal genin...it'll also be kind of fun torturing them with training.'_ Kakashi thought gleefully, actually looking forward to training his genin team.

* * *

A few weeks had passed since Team 7 had been formed and Kakashi was more than proud to say that he had three jonin level students. Sure they were only jonin in skill and lacking the proper experience, but still, it was an accomplishment to be proud of.

Naruto was at least high jonin, low anbu level in skill, his chakra was off the charts and yet had retained perfect chakra control thanks to constant control exercises. He had an impressive ninjutsu library, he was proficient with a variety of weapons, specialized with his monk's spade, and his taijutsu was held in high regard by even Guy, who had constantly found excuses to find Naruto and spar after their first fight. Though he did not delve too much into genjutsu, he knew enough to dispel some and cast the easiest ones. His medical ninjutsu was nearly on par with Tsunade's now and his elemental affinity control became so good that Naruto could actually manipulate the three elements to a certain degree without needing to use hand signs or jutsu of any kind really.

It was also during this time that the sandaime had given him the title of fuinjutsu master after having appropriately tested him. There were now four proficient fuinjutsu users in Konoha, well technically three since the toad sannin wasn't in the village at the moment.

Sasuke as well had made amazing progress that actually satisfied him. He was also at high jonin, low anbu level, and though his chakra was not as perfect as Naruto's he still had enough to use his also impressive ninjutsu library with the utmost proficiency, using as little chakra as possible with the most effect, not needing to say the names for any of them, and not needing the hand signs for any of his fire or lightning jutsu. He had been happy on his new front with lightning jutsu, since Kakashi also shared that affinity and was very free with the jutsu he'd learned and created. Sasuke's taijutsu also advanced, his Uchiha style being used to its fullest potential since Kakashi had helped him unlock all three tomoes of his sharingan. He'd also become rather adept at genjutsu, as would be expected of an Uchiha.

Sasuke was proud to be able to claim to be one of Konoha's kenjutsu masters, along with one Hayate Gekko and Yugao Uzuki, two jonin he occasionally sparred with in his free time.

Out of the three, however, the one that improved the most was Hinata, going from high genin to mid to high jonin level in skill, unlike with Sasuke and Naruto who were already at high chunin to low jonin level in skill from their constant training. Hinata had improved by leaps and bounds, the thing about her that improved the most being her self confidence.

Under team 7's rigorous training, Hinata had been subject to being constantly showered with deserved praise and positive reinforcement, something that the Hyuga could not provide and since she spent more time with her team than she did training with her own family, Hinata had found herself becoming more self assured of her strength, despite her father and sister's put-downs, and slowly began to show that strength to them, actually fighting back during her spar with her sister and showing them that she was never truly weak, she had simply been holding back because she didn't wish to hurt her sister.

It hadn't occurred to Hinata that she wasn't doing little Hanabi any favors by holding back. Naruto and Sasuke had told her as much when she confided in them about her life in the Hyuga compound, saying that letting Hanabi win all the time would only turn her arrogant like the rest of her clan and give her a false sense of strength that could get her killed one day when she becomes a ninja. Needless to say, Hinata had started to give it her all during their spars, even if it meant Hanabi would get hurt. She rather Hanabi get hurt now and improve than go out on the battlefield in false security and never have the chance to improve.

Team 7 also helped her realize that being timid wouldn't help her accomplish her goals so she began to form a 'Hyuga mask' that she would put on in order to be able to efficiently accomplish missions or handle situations better. She was, however, still kind and soft spoken and it showed in her eyes and in her voice even with the mask on, though she now no longer stuttered unless extremely nervous or very surprised or embarrassed. They also helped her create her own gentle fist style taijutsu when they discovered that Hinata's main affinity was water, while the gentle fist was based on earth, which made it more difficult for Hinata to advance in the gentle fist. Hinata's new style was much more fluid and speed dependent than its parent taijutsu, making it look like Hinata was dancing whenever she fought.

The three had improved greatly with their training and their teamwork was near flawless thanks to the various d-rank missions Kakashi managed to squeeze in before and after team training. It was after reviewing everything his team had accomplished in the last few weeks that Kakashi had decided to start building up some real experience for them.

* * *

"Hokage-sama, I would like to request a C-rank mission for my team." The hokage looked up from his papers to examine Kakashi's serious face before puffing on his pipe and shuffling some papers around.

"Well, your team has completed the appropriate amount of d-ranks for you to do so. We have a few escort missions that you can choose from-"

"I would like to request a bandit elimination mission, Hokage-sama." Now Hiruzen looked at Kakashi with steely eyes.

"I see you're beginning to take an interest in building up their experience." Kakashi nodded.

"I prefer they have their first kill with some low level bandits rather than with ninjas as skilled if not stronger than them." The hokage nodded.

"Alright, then I have a c-rank for you here. There has been a group of bandits attacking villages near the border between River and Fire country. They haven't bothered hiding their camp as all of the small villages they terrorize are too afraid to fight back so they sent one of the elder's sons to come here and request the mission to eliminate the bandits and their camp and rescue any prisoners they may have." He handed Kakashi the scroll, noting with approval the serious looks and stances of Kakashi's team.

"Hai, Hokage-sama, we will return as soon as the mission is complete." The hokage only waved off his formality.

"Take your time coming back, Kakashi, I'm sure your team would enjoy a leisurely pace back after your mission." Kakashi relaxed his straight posture, slouching like he usually did and eye smiling.

"Alright. I've been meaning to find time to read the new Icha Icha." Naruto and Sasuke rolled their eyes as the hokage and Kakashi began to giggle pervertedly while Hinata sent the two perverts a soft, disapproving look.

* * *

"According to the scroll, there are actually two bandit camps. They're not very far apart, only some sparse forestry between them, but it's enough for us to set up a camp as long as Naruto puts up soundproofing and camouflage seals." Naruto nodded as they hopped along the trees.

"Can do, Sensei." Kakashi nodded and turned to Sasuke.

"While Hinata and I set up camp and Naruto sets up the seals, you're going to be scouting the camp using some kage bunshin." Now it was Sasuke's turn to nod.

"Understood." Next, kakashi turned to address Hinata.

"Hinata, you're going to have to help me set up camp quickly because we can't risk getting caught by either camp before Naruto puts up the seals. It would put them on guard and make it that much harder to catch them off guard and rescue any victims.

"Hai, Sensei, I understand." Hinata stated softly, an underlying hint of steel in her voice that usually appeared whenever she was 'in the zone', or in mission mode.

"Kakashi-sensei, why are there two bandit camps?" Naruto asked.

"The main camp is mostly their barracks and storage for food and whatever items they may have stolen. The second camp is where they're keeping all the victims." Hinata's face looked horrified while the other two looked grim. How many bandits were there that they had to keep a separate camp for all the people they've taken?

"How many of them are there?" Hinata asked, voicing her thoughts. Kakashi shook his head.

"I don't know, but I intend to find out." Everyone had become silent after that, mentally preparing themselves for what was to come.

* * *

Naruto was anxiously pacing the small camp, his fingers on the device in his ear, the Uzumaki swirl visible on it if Naruto took his fingers off of it long enough for others to see it.

"How does it look, otouto?" Hinata and Kakashi didn't even bat an eyelash, long used to what Naruto and Sasuke called each other.

"Not very good, aniue," Sasuke stated quietly in a grim tone, his voice carrying perfectly over in the little receivers that they all wore. "The main camp has around seventy bandits in it, only about thirty of them are sleeping or too drunk to be a threat." Naruto nodded, it wasn't good, but it was something they could handle. Those thirty could be easily and quietly dispatched and the others taken out en masse by large scale jutsu or volleys of kunai and shuriken.

"And the second camp?" The line on the other end stayed silent so long that Naruto was afraid the seals may have stopped working.

"It's really bad, aniue," he whispered so softly that even over the receiver it was quiet. "There are around thirty guards and upwards of around forty people being held prisoner. All of them are men and women as old as twenty-five...and as young as six...some look recently kidnapped while others look severely malnourished. All of them are barely clothed or completely bare...aniue...some of the guards...they're-"

"Enough, Sasuke. You don't need to tell us. We can already guess and I don't think Hinata can take anymore detail." The line was silent for a moment.

"...Gomen*, aniue, Hinata." Naruto turned to a pale Hinata, Kakashi patting her back in comfort. This was her first time hearing about and being this close to such a thing.

"It's alright, Sasuke, I know you didn't mean anything by it," Hinata replied softly, feeling a little sick at the images her mind had created during Sasuke's report.

"Sasuke, how are the patrols?" Kakashi asked.

"They seem to change it every two hours or so. Five guards at a time. It would be easy to intercept them on their way between camps and replace them with henge'd kage bunshin so that we can slowly diminish their numbers while we plan our main attack." Kakashi nodded in approval.

"Good, leave some kage bunshin to watch them and do that and come back so we can plan."

"Hai, Kakashi-sensei."

* * *

It had been a good six hours since they arrived and team seven was very tense. Already Sasuke and Naruto had killed and replaced four guard shifts heading back to the main camp. Naruto and his kage bunshin had used the earth decapitation technique to bury the bastards alive, choking on dirt when they tried to scream, and Sasuke's kage bunshin henge'd and replaced the guards, going into closed tents to seal away any rations and stolen items they find and killing the bandits in their sleep, staving off suspicion by poisoning them so they still just looked asleep. Already they had gotten rid of around fifty bandits, leaving only about twenty real and awake bandits, the rest kage bunshin or killed in their sleep in the main camp and the thirty bandits guarding the prisoners.

It was decided that they would attack at midnight, Kakashi and Hinata would be hitting the main camp, killing off the remaining bandits and burning and burying the camp and bodies since Sasuke had already cleaned out everything of value, using transformed kage bunshin to replace the items in case anyone came checking on it(very useful technique kage bunshin.)

Naruto and Sasuke were to hit the second camp with their kage bunshin, simply planning for thirty Naruto kage bunshin to use the earth decapitation technique to bury them alive and another forty or so clones for both Naruto and Sasuke to give the victims proper clothes, food, and medical attention. The plan itself was quick and efficient and honestly could have been done by just Sasuke or Naruto alone, but the genin understood that they would all need the experience with taking lives, especially Hinata. Hinata was the only one in the group that was really sheltered despite her mistreatment at the Hyuga compound.

Sasuke had witnessed the Uchiha massacre at eight years old, Naruto had been subject to some of the darker sides of humanity thanks to the villagers since he was born, having been beaten to near death** more than once before he was eight along with the unfair prices when he went shopping and educational sabotage, and Kakashi had seen war so if anyone really needed this mission, it was sweet Hinata. It was part of a ninja's job to take lives and Hinata hadn't really come to terms with the darker side of her chosen profession yet. This mission would open her eyes to what exactly she had been turning a blind eye to.

* * *

"Ready?" His three genin nodded. "Alright, let's go." The four vanished from the tree tops splitting off in groups of two, darting in opposite directions. Kakashi and Hinata had an easy time with their job, though Hinata was a little queasy after having taken her first life, she kept going, her thoughts of what these bandits did to their prisoners fueling her determination.

Hinata twirled and glided between the twenty or so bandits, barely touching them with chakra laced fingers before they dropped dead like flies. Kakashi and two clones were in the background burning down the tents and bodies, using mass earth jutsu to bury the burning rubble and bodies, doing the same with the bode Hinata had quickly disposed of, the Hyuga wasn't even tired. After letting her stance drop, Hinata ran to the nearest bush and threw up the few contents in her stomach. Kakashi was there rubbing her back soothingly while she continued to dry heave and sob.

"I-it was so easy! I slaughtered them, I barely touched them and they died!" Kakashi let out a tired sigh as he comforted his student.

"I know, Hinata. It's very easy for us to take lives, especially when they're not ninja or samurai, it's living with the fact that we have taken those lives that's the difficult part." Hinata nodded shakily and hiccuped. She did not feel remorse for killing those specific individuals, she couldn't, not when she knew how many lives they'd taken, how many they'd ruined, but it was the fact she took a life at all that she found hard to swallow. Just like Kakashi said, it was too easy, but she felt the weight of the burden settle heavily on her shoulders.

"Does it ever feel any better?" Kakashi shrugged.

"Only if you think the cause justifies the means." Hinata thought about that. She had killed those bandits because she didn't want the to kill or hurt anymore people. The fact she had been the one to do so, possibly saving more people from suffering, did make her feel a little better. "Or if you become addicted to killing and become bloodthirsty," Kakashi joked morbidly. He chuckled weakly at Hinata's disapproving glare.

"That's not funny, Sensei." Kakashi chuckled weakly again, scratching the back of his head.

"Yeah, sorry, my bad. Too soon." Hinata couldn't help but giggle at her sensei's antics. "Why don't we go meet up with the other two they should be done by-" Both Kakashi and Hinata tensed when they felt Naruto's massive chakra flared, not a second later their bracelets flashed and sent a tingling up their arm.

"Naruto!" Both shouted in worry before darting off in the direction of the other camp.

* * *

"Rio!" A scantily clothed boy no older than nine shouted out the name, tears streaking lines down his dirt covered face, his hand reaching out to a completely identical boy who's arm was also outstretched, currently being held hostage by a thick, dirty middle aged man.

"Sora!" An audible growl tore out of Naruto's chest.

"**Let. The boy. GO.**" Naruto enunciated it slowly and word for word, using a touch of Kurama's chakra to make his voice demonic. _'Oh this man will die. **painfully.** An earth spike up his ass and out the top of his head should do it.'_ He didn't give the bandit a chance to respond to his threat, immediately slamming his hand down on the ground beneath him and sending a size-able amount of chakra to the ground right underneath the last bandit. However, even Naruto was shocked at what came out of the ground.

Instead of the stone spear that Naruto had expected, a wooden roots sprouted out of the man and all but consumed the man in its intertwining branches, the boy falling harmlessly to the ground and running straight into the arms of his twin brother. Everyone watched in awe as the wooden roots continued to sprout up until there was a massive green canopied tree standing proudly where the last bandit used to be.

Sasuke who had been intelligently silent whilst his brother was enraged, chose the eerily quiet lapse to speak. "Aniue," Sasuke murmured. Naruto did not turn away from the large tree.

"Yeah, otouto?" Naruto returned in a shocked whisper.

"I think you used too much chakra." Sasuke stated factually, making Naruto turned his wide eyed, gaping expression to Sasuke.

"N-N-Naruto, you have the Shodaime's b-b-bloodline ability?!" Hinata said loudly...well loudly for her, making Sasuke and Naruto aware of hers and Kakashi's arrival.

"...apparently?" Naruto stated in a half question, obviously still trying to believe it himself. The other three sweat dropped. The tense silence that followed at the revelation was broken by Kakashi, who chuckled lightly.

"You really are Konoha's number one most unpredictable ninja aren't you." Naruto only chuckled weakly in response.

"I think...I'll worry about this later. Right now I want to make sure the victims are properly fed and clothed. My kage bunshin have already given them medical examinations. A few diseases that were easily cured and some malnourishment that a few days of healthy food won't fix, but...some of them were pregnant."

Hinata gasped in horror at that. "Oh no..." Naruto nodded grimly.

"A few of them were pregnant from before they were taken, the rest...well they were early enough in their pregnancy that I could give them the option of aborting it. Some said yes...others decided to keep theirs, among them a girl our age decided to keep hers." Hinata shook at that, gaining some comfort and reassurance from Kakashi's and Sasuke's encouraging pats.

"For now we'll help them settle in for the night and tomorrow we can sort out where to escort them all tomorrow.

* * *

_'This is really weird...'_ Naruto thought as he walked through the makeshift camp for forty or so men, women, and children. All of them bowed and smiled as he passed, addressing him respectfully despite not even knowing his name.

"Senju-sama."

"Ki seijin***."

"Eiyu-sama."

"Yusha-sama." Naruto actually sighed in relief when he reached his team, only to groan when Sasuke spoke.

"Have a good stroll, _Eiyu-sama_?" Kakashi cut him off before he could respond.

"Yes, enjoy your walk, _Senju-sama_?" Again he was stopped and it was surprisingly by Hinata.

"I'm honored to be in your presence, _Ki Seijin._" Hinata said softly, demurely even bowing a little though her amused smile gave it away. Naruto just groaned.

"Not you, too, Hinata-chan," Naruto whined lightly sitting down and bowing his head, his hands ruffling his hair in frustration. "It's weird enough coming from them." Naruto said, pointing his thumb to the rest of the camp. Kakashi chuckled while Hinata giggled, Sasuke only smirking.

"You should get used to it, aniue. Konoha is going to start calling you Senju-sama and other respectful terms once they find out about your heritage." Naruto only groaned again.

"Great, now I have that to look forward to," Naruto let one hand slip off his head and into his lap, while the other slid back to rub at his neck. "Have we got destinations for everyone?" Hinata nodded as she shuffled through a small stack of papers.

"Yes, even those who have no family left or are orphans have found family during their...unpleasant stay here and have decided to start anew together. Well...all except for two." Naruto titled his head in curiosity.

"Who?"

"Us." Two small voices chimed in unison. Naruto turned and stared wide eyed at two identical eight year old boys standing before him, their hands intertwined.

"Oh...you're the twins from last night. Umm... Sora and Rio****, right?" The two nodded their heads enthusiastic, absolutely beaming at the fact their savior had remembered their names. Naruto chuckled at their innocent actions and examined them more closely. The slightly taller of the two was standing straight, his shoulders squared and his small legs set firmly apart, a naturally confident stance while the slightly shorter was hunched over a little, his shoulders high and his head looking slightly down, his chin tucked into his chest, and the ends of his feet pointed more inward than outward, the pose reminding him much of Hinata before they started training together. Both had the same pale white complexion, straight dark brown hair, and forest green eyes.

It occurred to him that they were probably the same height, just that the timid one seemed smaller because of his body language. The more confident one spoke. "I'm Sora, this is my brother Rio." Sora nudged his brother which was apparently a signal for him to speak.

"W-we want to become your ve-vo-"

"Vassals," Sora whispered to his brother.

"Vassals, Senju-sama," Rio finished. Then the two of them bowed saying the next in perfect unison, "please."

* * *

***Gomen just means sorry, in case you didn't know.**

****I hope you guys aren't too surprised by this. I think I've hinted that his mistreatment went beyond sabotaged education and overcharging for crappy products like how he always has his favorite weapon by his bedside and before that during the Mizuki incident, when Sandaime was giving Naruto his mission, he said that the anbu wouldn't interfere unless he was in danger of getting killed and Naruto commented mentally that it wasn't 'any different from how they guarded him as a kid.'**

*****Should literally translate to tree sage, if not I'm sorry, I used google translate. Also, the two words beneath it both mean hero.**

******Sora and Rio are my OC's. They will not have a major role and will not become ninja...I'll go more into detail about them in the next chapter. **

I actually wrote down everything I had set out to write in this chapter so I'm pretty satisfied. I know the c-rank wasn't exactly challenging, but it is very below their skill level, so the really exciting stuff won't happen until the story develops more. Until then.(^-^)


	8. Ch 8 Demon in Wave

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto

* * *

"Ummm...what?" Sasuke rolled his eyes, his arms crossed.

"They said vassals, aniue." Sasuke examined them more closely, making the two boys cringe at the hard stare. "They look healthy enough, but they have civilian chakra reserves at best, as expected of normal eight year old children." He looked down at them disdainfully. "What could you offer my aniue as his vassals? Naruto is not only the great grandson of the first hokage, he's also the great grand uncle of the second hokage, surrogate grandson to the third hokage, son of the fourth hokage, godson to Jiraiya and distant relative to Tsunade of the sannin. He is heir to two clans and plans on becoming hokage himself one day." Sasuke looked down disdainfully at the two.

"So I ask again? What could you two possibly have to offer him as vassals? Are you even educated?" Naruto glared reproachfully at the Uchiha, his tone the same.

"Otouto! They're just kids." Sasuke scoffed, unperturbed.

"We were the same age as they were when we started training. They should know what they're getting into. You shouldn't accept charity cases. You already have enough on your plate without having to worry about two useless orphans." Before Naruto could reprimand him further, one of the twins spoke.

"We're not useless!" Sora exclaimed. "We can cook and clean! We know how to write our names and some basic kanji! We know how to count and add and subtract some! We're not useless!" He repeated, indignant tears forming in his eyes, his brother in a similar state.

"Hn, the basics, huh? That's all you know and you still think you could be of use to him." Sora bit his lip, looking dejectedly at the floor and it was surprisingly the timid one that spoke up, seeming to want to help out his brother.

"W-we'll learn! We won't be burdens! We promise!" The two held their chins up, shaking from Sasuke's cold glare but not backing off, rather impressive since Sasuke's glare could make some chunin nervous. Sasuke seemed to think it was impressive as well since his glare melted into a satisfied smirk.

"Hn, you have some nice resolve. Maybe they wouldn't be so useless. OW!" Sasuke rubbed at a throbbing arm, finding that it was Hinata who had just punched it.

"How could you do that to them! Look at them, you made them cry!" Hinata immediately went into mothering mode, working on calming down the two frightened, but relieved at having passed whatever test Sasuke had put them through. Sasuke shot Naruto a shocked glance, pointedly tilting his head in Hinata's direction. Naruto only chuckled and shrugged.

"So, otouto, when did you take it upon yourself to choose my vassals for me?" Naruto asked jokingly, his worry over the boys having dissipated when he realized what the Uchiha was doing.

"When I realized you were going to keep all three of your properties." Sasuke answered seriously. He picked up a few pieces of paper and handed them to Naruto. "Some of the people showed a vested interest in becoming your vassals as well. I took the liberty of choosing the ones with the most skills that would be useful to you. Now you won't have to expend any kage bunshin to maintain the Senju and Uzumaki compounds and I made sure there was at least one person with financial expertise living in each compound. You have about ten vassals for each compound. I plan on sending those two brothers to live at your parents house. It's much smaller and can easily be cleaned and maintained by them. A widow will be living with them as well, she used to be a teacher before the bandits killed her family and took her so she'll be teaching them everything they need to know and acting like a mother to them."

Naruto could only gape at his brother, looking in disbelief between him and the list of names he held with a list of skills right next to them. After taking a few...a lot of deep breaths to get over his shock of what his brother had done, he realized that having vassals would be useful and as he looked through the sheets, he noticed that those listed didn't really have anywhere to return to...or more like anyone. Naruto couldn't refuse these people a second chance and if they helped him out as well then that was a bonus. Naruto only sighed and sent a grateful smile to Sasuke.

"Thanks, otouto." Sasuke gave one of his genuine rare smiles in return.

"You're welcome. I just wanted to get one more thing off your plate, you have enough on it as is and this takes your mind off of the clan properties and businesses. Everyone here trusts you with their life and are completely loyal to you because you saved them and now you've given them all a second chance. It was the perfect opportunity to get loyal vassals you wouldn't ever be able to find in Konoha. They're also probably all more skilled and intelligent than those losers." Naruto's smile saddened at the mention of Konoha.

"I wonder if they'd still think of me the same if they knew about what I held." the blond stated, his hand going to the seal on his stomach.

"They do," the Uchiha said bluntly. "I told them about it when I was interviewing those that wanted to become your vassals. If anything they respect you more for it and now hold a certain animosity towards Konoha's population for shunning you. The only reason those kids came up to you directly is because I've only been taking adults and some of them had low genin level chakra levels so they could learn a few ninja basics to better serve you. I had already planned on letting them come with us though to upkeep your parents' house though."

Naruto groaned, rubbing his temples. "Should I even ask what else you've decided to help me with? And don't you have your own clan to worry about?" Sasuke smirked at this.

"You'll find out eventually, and don't worry. I took in some of my own vassals to take care of the Uchiha compound. They were all for it when they heard we were sworn brothers and our clans are allies."

"Exactly how many are coming with us?"

"Your twenty two vassals and my three, so twenty five in total. The rest are going elsewhere, our kage bunshin will be escorting them there."

"So only fifteen are actually not going to Konoha with us? Does Kakashi know about this?"

"Yes, yes I do. Sasuke asked me for approval to go around interviewing them when they started coming up to ask if they could become your servants." Naruto only shook his head.

"I don't know whether to thank you or punch you, otouto. Do I even really need to do anything anymore?" Sasuke smirked.

"You already thanked me, I'd rather you didn't punch me, and no, you don't have to do anything. They all have individualized papers that specify where to go and what their jobs are." The blond rolled his eyes at the Uchiha.

"I wonder how Jiji will react to this." Kakashi eye smiled.

"Oh, he already knows as well. I sent a carrier bird with the message. He sent one back saying he took the liberty of going into some of your clan's money to pay for setting up the compounds to be lived in again." The blond jinchuuriki only groaned, smacking his head with his hand.

"I swear I'll get revenge at you guys for this...even though you're technically helping me...augh how the hell am I supposed to react to this?" Naruto muttered to himself, making Kakashi and Sasuke chuckle.

* * *

It had been about two weeks since they returned from their first c-rank mission and they had already done another two, one a simple escort mission and the other another bandit extermination. Kakashi had even scored them one B-rank, it helped that Naruto pulled the 'this would help me trust you more' card on him. The job itself was simple as it only involved guarding an important noble who knew had C-B rank missing nin hired to come after him. Though the genin trio had gotten more of a challenge during their B-rank, they still felt their skills were untested and it's not like they could go all out during their spars with each other without horribly maiming each other on accident.

Kakashi, after their b-rank, had decided to move them back to D-ranks to give them a little bit of a break and give them time to relax and spar with their teammates, but the three were quickly growing irritated with the tedious chores they were assigned...especially one specific mission...

* * *

"What's the distance to the target?" Kakashi asked into the receiver.

"Five meters. Ki Seijin ready at any time."

"Cockatoo is ready as well."

"Waterlily is in position."

"Ok. Go!" Kakashi ordered. The three genin darted out from their hiding positions and lunged at the target. Naruto was the one to grab the little beast, immediately sending his chakra over it and soothing it quickly, the little demon purring in his arms, rubbing its face against his chest.

"Ribbon on its left ear...are you sure it's Tora?" Kakashi questioned. Sasuke glared at the little beast, disliking how cozy it looked in his brother's arms.

"Yeah, we're sure."

"Good, lost pet 'Tora' mission complete!" Hinata giggled as Tora continued to purr loudly and rub herself all over Naruto.

"This mission has gotten much easier since you discovered your wood release. Your chakra can sooth any animal to tameness." Sasuke only glared at the cat.

"That's not an animal, that's a demon." Sasuke still had the bitter memories of the first time they went after that wretched cat. He could still feel the phantom pain from the scratches it gave his face. Both Naruto and Hinata laughed at the Uchiha's disgruntled expression.

* * *

"Oh, my cute little Tora-chan, I'm so glad you're alright!" The fire daimyo's wife shouted in joy, drowning out poor Tora's ungodly yowl at being held too tightly. Both Naruto and Hinata looked sorry for the poor cat while Sasuke smirked sadistically at the cat, enjoying his torment.

"Alright...team 7, for your next mission you can choose between babysitting an elder's grandson, shopping in the neighboring village for an injured elder, or helping a farmer with potato digging." All three genin sent Kakashi a dark glare, causing the man to sweat drop.

"Er, Hokage-sama, could we get a c-rank if possible? It seems my team has gotten sick of d-ranks again." _'And I don't want them to kill me in my sleep...or worse burn my Icha Icha!'_ The hokage sighed and smiled, puffing on his pipe a bit, having expected them to get sick of it soon.

"Ok, I have a C-rank for you then. It's a protection mission for a certain individual." Naruto crossed his arms.

"Who is it this time? A wealthy merchant?"

"Maybe it's that noble from before?" Sasuke put in. "He did say he would request us next time he came."

"Perhaps it's a scholar?" Hinata guessed. Hiruzen only chuckled.

"No, no. I'm about to introduce him." He turned to the door. "You can enter now." All three turned to the door curiously, only to frown when they saw a drunken old man holding a sake bottle come in.

"What's this? They're al a bunch of super brats. Especially the blond with the stupid-looking face. Are you really a ninja? Hey?!" He asked while he leaned against the door frame. A tick mark appeared on Naruto's face, but it quickly faded when he noticed the murderous glare Sasuke was sending him, his hand on the hilt of his blade, ready to kill the old man. Naruto put a hand on his wrist, making Sasuke stiffen and glance at him from the corner of his eye. Naruto shook his head minutely, a disapproving frown on his face.

Sasuke frowned as well, unhappy at being unable to hurt the man, so instead he opted to verbally jab at the old man. "You're lucky my aniue's vassals weren't here to hear you say that. They'd beat you till you pissed blood, you drunken old geezer." Hinata smacked the back of his head at his vulgar insult, but Sasuke still smirked when the old man gulped nervously. He cleared his throat, recovering quickly.

"I am the super expert bridge builder Tazuna. I expect you to provide me with super protection until I get back to my country and complete the bridge." Kakashi sighed at the glares Sasuke and Hinata were sending the old man. It seemed the only one not mad at him having insulted Naruto...was Naruto himself.

_'This is going to be a looong mission...' _

* * *

Once team 7 and their client had left the village, a tense silence settled among them. Sasuke was still angry at the old man for calling his aniue stupid and Hinata did not respect an insulting drunken old man. Naruto was the one acting as a barrier between Sasuke and the bridge-builder, in case the Uchiha decided to give the client some 'accidental' bodily harm and the client himself was too drunk to notice or care about the tense atmosphere.

The three genin sent each other and their sensei discreet glances when they noticed a puddle in the distance. A few quick hand motion and they had decided on a course of action. The group passed by the puddle without incident, only after being a few feet in front of it did two shinobi pop out, wrapping a shuriken chain connected to their gauntlets around Kakashi and promptly cutting 'him' into pieces.

"One down," the one with wild black spiky hair said. Hinata let out a mock gasp of horror, Naruto shouting out his name, bringing the two's attention to him.  
"Kakashi-sensei!" The two shunshin'ed behind him.

"Two down," the same man said. Naruto's shocked face dropped immediately, revealing a knowing smirk, as the chain looped in front of him.

"I wouldn't be so sure," the blond stated before disappearing in a poof of smoke, Sasuke following up by throwing a single shuriken at the chain and sticking it to a tree trunk, throwing a kunai in the shuriken's center to make sure the two stayed stuck. The Uchiha used their temporary confusion to jump onto their gauntlets, grabbing them and using the leverage to kick the two in the face simultaneously. The two enemies recovered quickly, their gauntlets releasing the chain and the two separating, the one with wild hair attacking Naruto who had reappeared a few feet from Tazuna, and the one with straight hair going to attack Hinata who was protecting the client.

Naruto made quick work of his opponent, clicking his tongue in disapproval at the man. "Charging head on is never a good idea unless you know that your target is weaker than you." His monk's spade appeared in his hand. "And I am most definitely not weaker than you." The man's eyes widened when his gauntlet's claws hit nothing but air and he as too late to dodge the hit Naruto had delivered to the back of his neck using the staff part of his weapon. "Not even a challenge," Naruto commented sadly.

Hinata's battle was not very different, needing only to redirect the other enemies' jab away from the client followed by two chakra laced jabs to his neck, rendering the man unconscious. Kakashi poofed back into the group, shocking the old man.

"Good job team, as always." Kakashi did the honors of tying them up propping them against a tree as they waited for the two to regain consciousness. "Tazuna-san, I think we need to have a little talk." Kakashi said, eye smiling at the sweating man.

* * *

"Gozu and Meizu, twin brothers and missing-nin from Kirigakure, only known associate being Momochi Zabuza, also a missing-nin. Both are 25 years old, rank: chunin." Naruto stated as he read from the bingo book.

"Kirigakure shinobi are known to continue fighting no matter what...hmm, I wonder why their headbands aren't crossed out?"

"We can fucking hear you, you know?!" The wild haired twin hissed at them.

"Shut up Meizu!" The straight haired twin kicked his brother, glaring at Kakashi. "How did you read our movements?" Kakashi spared them a lazy glance.

"On a sunny day like this when it hasn't rained in days, there's not going to be a puddle."

"If you knew that, why'd you let the brats fight?" Tazuna asked. Kakashi waved his hand flippantly.

"Any one of my team, me included could have killed these two instantly, but," he sent a side ways glare at Tazuna, "there was something I needed to find out...who these two were after."

"What do you mean?" Tazuna asked, feigning ignorance.

"Meaning...were they after you? Or one of us?" He looked suspiciously at the old man, making him sweat. "We didn't hear that there were ninja after you. Our mission was to simply protect you from thieves or gangs. This has now become at least an A-rank mission. This was supposed to be simple protection until you completed the bridge." The old man looked down, his brows furrowed.

Naruto crossed his arms. "If they had known ninja were after you, this would have definitely been set as a B-rank, now that Momochi Zabuza could possibly be in the picture, this is an A-possible S-rank mission because of his anbu rank." Sasuke looked to the old man.

"I'm sure you had your reasons, but it causes problems when you lie about the mission. As of now we're operating outside of our mission parameters." The team was enjoying watching the old man sweat, until Hinata decided to end the fun.

"It's a good thing you got our team rather than regular genin." The relief on his face when she said that was rather comical. Tazuna took a deep breath and looked seriously at the team.

"I suppose you deserve the truth. You're right, this job is most likely outside of your duties. It turns out that a super dangerous man is after my life." The four sweat dropped at hearing this, all thinking the same thing.

_'What is with this guy and the word super?' _

"Who?" Kakashi asked. Tazuna sighed.

"You've probably at least heard his name before. The wealthy shipping magnate...a man named Gatou." Kakashi's and surprisingly Naruto's eyes widened at that.

"Gatou?! From THE Gatou Company? He's said to be one of the world's few extremely wealthy people." Everyone looked at Naruto in surprised and confusion.

"What? My financial advisor for the Senju has been recommending that I expand my businesses by trading with and investing in companies outside of Konoha." Sasuke shook his head.

"Not that, aniue. It's what you said about the world's few extremely wealthy people." Naruto tilted his head in confusion.

"What about it?" His team sweat dropped.

"Naruto...you're one of them." Realization dawned on his face, remembering the Senju, Uzumaki, and even Namikaze fortunes. His father wasn't a hokage level ninja for nothing after all. Naruto flushed slightly in embarrassment, scratching the back of his head.

"Oh. Right. Sorry." Tazuna cleared his throat to recapture everyone's attention.

"Yes, well, officially he runs a large shipping company...but secretly he sells drugs and other illegal items, using ninja and gang members to take over businesses and countries. He's a very nasty man." The others sweat dropped.

_'Nasty would be putting it mildly...' _

"It was about a year ago when he set his eyes on Wave country. Through money and violence, he quickly took control of the country's shipping industry. Gatou now has a monopoly on all business traffic in the country. The only thing he has to fear now is the completion of the bridge." Sasuke crossed his arms.

"I see. With the completion of the bridge, Gatou's monopoly will disappear...so he sent ninja after you to stop it rom happening."

"What I don't understand is why you hid the fact that ninja were after you when you hired us." Naruto raised a brow at his sensei.

"Isn't it obvious, Kakashi-sensei? With Gatou having a monopoly on all the business, the rest of Wave must have been bled dry." Kakashi scratched the back of his head in embarrassment, something that apparently both Naruto and he did.

"It's true," Tazuna stated, "Wave country is super poor. Even the daimyo has no money. Of course, we don't have much money either...not enough for an expensive B-rank mission." Kakashi's brows furrowed. "...well if you quit the mission now I will definitely be killed..." The old man suddenly grinned cheerily. "Don't worry! If I die, my cute 10 year old grandson will just cry for a few days! Oh yeah, and my daughter will live a sad life hating Konoha ninja forever! But it won't be your fault! Not at all!" The four sweat dropped at the man's obvious act, but Kakashi couldn't help but cave in...even though they had already decided to go on with the mission, but the old man didn't know that.

"Well, I guess we have no choice," he said with a worried eye smile, "we will protect you until you complete your bridge." The three genin gave their sensei a deadpan stare.

_'Pushover,'_ the three thought in unison.

"Oi! What about us?! OW!"

"I said shut up, Meizu!" Everyone turned to the duo, having forgotten about them.

"Oh, right, you two."

"Hey, Sensei, why don't we send for some anbu to pick them up and keep them prisoner in Konoha. We can decide what to do with them once we finish the mission and get back to Konoha." Kakashi rubbed his chin thoughtfully before shrugging.

"Sure, why not? it'd be nice not to worry about them until we get back."

* * *

The boat ride provided by Tazuna's understandably paranoid friend was quiet and when they got off, everyone was tense, expecting a very dangerous shinobi(*cough Zabuza cough*) to show up any second. After walking for a while, Naruto's head snapped towards a certain direction and he threw a shuriken into the bushes. Immediately the others were on guard.

Naruto went to investigate where his shuriken hit to see a white rabbit frozen in fear. His eyes widened. "White coat? It's already spring...Somebody used this for substitution, Hinata, see if they're still in the area." Hinata nodded, activating her byakugan only to gasp a second later.

"Everybody get down!" The group ducked in time to miss being cut in half by a very large sword. They stood at attention when the enemy stood on the hilt of his sword, the sword itself embedded halfway into the tree it hit. Kakashi put his hands in his pockets.

"Well, well, if it isn't Kirigakure's missing-nin Momochi Zabuza." Kakashi glanced at Sasuke who seemed to be itching to grab his sword and charge. _'Well, I can't really blame him. He's supposed to be a kenjutsu master and here's one of the seven swordsman of the mist right in front of him...'_

"And you must be Sharingan Kakashi. Sorry, but...the old man is mine." Kakashi eye smiled at the man.

"I'm sorry, too, because it's not my sharingan you'll be fighting." The man looked confused for just a moment before Kakashi stepped aside and revealed Sasuke, his sharingan spinning rapidly in excitement as he pulled out his kusanagi.

"Oh? I'd be honored to fight the last loyal Uchiha of Konoha...provided the gaki is actually a challenge." Zabuza crouched down and grabbed the hilt. "Now, let's get started shall we? After all, I have an old man I need to kill." Zabuza leapt and kicked at the tree, pulling his sword out and landing on the nearby river. Immediately he made a hand sign that started to create a thick mist, his form vanishing with it. "Hidden Mist jutsu." Naruto, Kakashi and Hinata were all guarding Tazuna.

"Hinata can you see anything through the mist?" Hinata strained her byakugan for a moment before shaking her head in disappointment.

"No, the mist is filled with chakra, sorry Naruto." Naruto just shook his head.

"Don't worry about it, Hinata, it's not your fault."

"Be careful Sasuke, Momochi Zabuza...as a member of Kirigakure...he was known as an expert in silent killing."

"The mist is getting thicker," Naruto murmured.

_"8 choices,"_ a disembodied voice said, _"liver, lung, spine, __clavicle vein, neck vein, brain, kidneys, and heart...Which one should I go after?" _It was then that the KI hit them. Naruto chuckled.

"Not bad." He thrust his monk's spade back, not even turning, the crescent piercing the water clone of Zabuza that had appeared behind him. Hinata twirled to destroy the second mizu bunshin that had appeared, her gentle fist making quick work of him. "Not bad at all." A third Zabuza appeared, ready to strike Kakashi down, when a blade appeared at his throat, the one holding the blade being Sasuke.

"I think you forgot about me." Zabuza only chuckled.

"Impressive, gaki," suddenly there was another Zabuza behind him, "but not impressive enough." The clone turned back to water as Sasuke quickly dropped to the ground to avoid Zabuza's blade only for him to have to quickly cross his arms when Zabuza sent a kick at him, sending him flying across the clearing. Zabuza was about to charge and slice him while he was in the air, but had noticed the caltrops the Uchiha must have set down as he was hit. Zabuza smirked as the Uchiha hit the water.

"Foolish." Sasuke frowned when he noticed the density of the water, Zabuza appearing behind him on the river. "Heh, fool." Naruto's eyes widened at the hand signs he was making.

"Sasuke, get out of there!" But it was too late, Zabuza had trapped him in his water prison technique.

"It makes it tougher to beat me if you can't move, doesn't it Uchiha?" Zabuza mocked. His attention turned to the rest when he heard an audible and very impressive growl coming from the blond.

"I suggest you let go of my otouto...before I cut your arm off." Zabuza scoffed.

"What are you-" His eyes widened as he felt a massive KI coming from behind him, his eyes darting to the monk's spade that was coming down to make good on the blond gaki's promise. Zabuza had no choice but to release the prison and jump aside to save his arm, skidding across the surface of the water while the blond helped the Uchiha up, his eyes never leaving Zabuza's.

Sasuke coughed a bit and grit his teeth, his brows furrowed in frustration. "Gomen, aniue, I got too cocky*." Naruto let his arm go when he was standing steadily on the water.

"It's fine, otouto." Naruto sent a cold glare at the missing-nin, sending a shiver down his spine. "Why don't we show this eyebrow-less freak just what happens when you mess with one of us." Sasuke smirked while Zabuza growled.

"Go ahead and try, you little brats!" Zabuza started to make hand signs faster than most people could keep up with, Naruto and Sasuke doing the same.

_'Water Dragon Blast!' 'Fire Dragon Flame Bullet!' 'Wind style: Great Breakthrough!' _A giant water dragon sped towards the duo at the same time a flaming dragon sped towards Zabuza, the dragon having been enlarged by Naruto's wind jutsu. The fire dragon split off into three, the center pillar colliding with the water dragon, making the two explode in a cloud of vapor and smoke. The other two pillars of flames went left and right only to curve and converge on Zabuza who let himself fall into the water to avoid the attack.

"Sasuke, now!" Naruto shouted as another cloud of vapor and smoke appeared on the river's surface. Naruto leapt back onto solid ground as Sasuke did quick succession hand signs, gripping his right wrist and hunching over slightly as the jutsu formed in his palm. The air was soon filled with what sounded like thousands of birds chirping as lightning began to crackled and become visible in Sasuke's hand. He wasted no time jumping to where he'd seen Zabuza submerge and thrust his jutsu into it.

"Chidori!" Naruto and the others had to cover their eyes from how much the water lit up when the lightning jutsu hit. By the time they opened their eyes, Sasuke was standing over a floating and unconscious Zabuza, still clearly alive.

"It must be because he only received the after shocks rather than getting the chidori head on," Kakashi reasoned." Naruto nodded while Sasuke took out his kusanagi to kill the missing-nin, only for two senbon to beat him to it.

"I thank you for making his death much easier for me." Everyone's head turned towards a young man in a hunter-nin get up.

* * *

***For those of you who might be wondering how Sasuke got caught in that jutsu so easily. I would like to point out that even though I have previously stated that team 7 are all at jonin level, and Kakashi is anbu level, Zabuza is listed as an anbu level missing-nin and in canon, Kakashi was caught by it just like Sasuke. I think he did pretty well for it having been his first time fighting such a high rank missing-nin with as little experience as he has. **

Not too many outstanding notes in this chapter...just one. I hope this chapter was at least a little more exciting this time. Next chapter is the continuation to the wave arc. Until then, like always, reviews would be appreciated and thanks for reading (^v^)


	9. Ch 9 A Deal with the Demon

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto

Warning: Will contain some blood & violence later on, because of this the rating has been changed to M, just in case. Sorry for not warning anyone in the previous chapter.

* * *

Sasuke glared at the figure that stole his kill.

"That mask...you're a Kirigakure hunter-nin." The masked figure bowed slightly, his long black bangs waving slightly.

"...Impressive. You are correct." The hunter-nin shunshin'ed down to Zabuza's body. "Your battle is now over...and now I must dispose of this body...since it seems to have many secrets. Farewell." He shunshin'ed away, body and all. It was silent for a moment after he left.

"Sensei," Naruto muttered.

"I know, Naruto, but for now let's get Tazuna back to his house. Let's go!" Tazuna laughed, grabbing his straw hat.

"Super thanks, guys! Come over to my house to relax for a while!"

* * *

"It should take about a week for Zabuza to recover from being put in a temporary death state." Naruto stated seriously as he sharpened and polished his monk's spade.

"What should we do until then?" Sasuke asked before placing some paper in his mouth as he took care of his own weapon.

"I suppose we can train to pass the time," Kakashi eye smiled. "It should be fun!"

"That's not fun." A small boy in a bucket hat said sullenly. Sasuke removed the paper from his mouth, carefully wiping the katana of any old oil.

"Who's the gaki?" Sasuke asked as he put down the paper and picked up the powder ball to start dabbing at the blade.

"Oh! Inari! Where were you?!" The kid took off his shoes.

"Welcome back...grandpa." Tsunami, the old man's daughter put her hands on her hips and looked at the boy who was hugging his grandfather.

"Inari, say hello to these people. They are ninja who protected your grandpa." He glared a them from beneath his hat before letting go of his grandfather and pointing rudely at them while looking at his mother.

"Mom...they're going to die." Naruto twirled his monk's spade to start working on the other end of the weapon.

"Of course we're going to die, brat. Everyone dies eventually, what are you, stupid?" Sasuke smirked when Hinata hit Naruto in the back of the head, giving him a reproachful look. The boy glared at the blond.

"I know that! I meant that you're going to get killed!" He gripped the sides if his clothes, glaring sullenly at the ground. "No one can win against Gatou." Sasuke scoffed at that, wiping his blade down with a thin coat of oil.

"The day that Naruto...or any of us for that matter, lose to a rich, fat, short guy, is the day that hero-man over here decides to destroy Konoha." He looked at the boy as he re-sheathed his blade, ignoring the blond's mock glare. "It's never going to happen."

"Pfft...what are you, stupid? There's no such thing as a hero." A tick mark appeared on Sasuke's head at being called stupid. "If you don't want to die, you should leave..." he stated as he went towards the hall.

"Where are you going, Inari?" His grandfather asked.

"To look at the ocean from my room." After an awkward silence, Tazuna spoke up.

"Sorry..." the 'about him' went unspoken.

"Hn," he turned a smirk to Tazuna, "yeah, old man, you have a very cute little grandson." Naruto smirked joining in as Tazuna began to look nervous.

"Oh yeah, what was that about him crying for three days if you died? That kid seems to have something against heroes. It looks more like he'd spit on your grave and call you an idiot for being stupid enough to go against Gatou." By the end of it, Tazuna was crying waterfall tears, curled up in a ball in the corner, Naruto and Sasuke giving each other a fist pound.

* * *

"So what's the real plan?" Naruto asked Kakashi once they had left the next day to 'go training.' Kakashi eye smiled.

"Hinata's going to go back to Tazuna's house in a little bit to guard him while you two," he looked to the two boys, "will be using your shadow clones to find Gatou and his bases of operation in Wave." Naruto grinned in anticipation.

"Search and Destroy?" The blond asked hopefully. Kakashi nodded enthusiastically.

"Yup." Naruto pumped his fist a little in excitement. "Today you'll only be locating them and then we will be shutting down and destroying them over the course of the week leading up to our eventual rematch with Zabuza and his apprentice. On the last day, you and Sasuke will go to Gatou's main base and location and forcefully take over his company, sorting through what rightfully belongs to Wave and what can be split between us and Konoha when we return." Sasuke gave a feral smirk, also looking forward to this.

Search and destroy missions were fun because they could use their super destructive jutsu more often than not and the two didn't have much opportunity to use their large scale jutsu.

"This week's going to be so awesome!" Naruto whispered to himself, totally psyched.

* * *

Hinata yawned lightly as she watched the workers build the bridge.

"Hey," she turned to Tazuna, "aren't you bored here all by yourself? Where's the blond kid and the other one?" Hinata smiled.

"They're training."

"You don't have to?" She smiled again, shaking her head.

"I already completed the training so Kakashi-sensei sent me to guard you." Tazuna shrugged...well he shrugged as best as he could with a wooden beam on his shoulder.

"If you say so." He grunted as he put down the beam.

"Hey...Tazuna!" The old man looked up at the other old man as he wiped some sweat with the towel around his neck.

"What is it Gichi?" Gichi had taken off his helmet, the thing resting between his arm and hip.

"I've been doing a lot of thinking recently and...I want to stop working on the bridge."

"What?! Why?! This is so sudden! Not you too!"

"Tazuna, we've been close for a long time now. I want to help you, but if we continue this, Gatou will notice us and if you get killed , then what's the point?" He looked pleadingly at his friend. "Why don't we quit now...building the bridge..." Tazuna stayed silent for a moment before answering.

"I can't do that. This is our bridge. This is the bridge we started building together, believing it would bring resources into our super poor country.

"But if we lose our lives-"

"It's already noon, let's stop for today," Tazuna interrupted, turning away. He looked over his shoulder to his friend, grabbing his helmet. "Gichi, you don't have to come tomorrow. Hinata watched the entire exchange quietly.

_'I wonder how Sasuke and Naruto are doing?'_

* * *

Naruto tacked off his fingers as he spoke, him and Sasuke walking casually back to Tazuna's house for dinner, both of them having a small spar before heading out to at least look the part of having trained. "Three drug cartels, two slave trading markets, two illegal weapons trafficking markets, and his base of operation."

"The three drug cartels are guarded by three chunin, five samurai, and twenty two thugs each with about ten slaves working on packaging the drugs. The slave trading markets are only guarded by two chunin, two samurai, and ten thugs each with both containing around twenty five or so slaves. The weapons trafficking is only run by a dirty civilian merchant and two samurai guards each. The hardest will be his base of operation because of its more massive numbers." Naruto nodded.

"Three floors, one underground. A patrol of four chunin and six samurai outside. Around twenty thugs on the first floor and on the second floor a jonin and ten samurai. The basement has his safe and has two jonin and twenty samurai guarding it."

"We'll hit the weapons trafficking first, then the slave markets and drug cartels since he visits the last most frequently."

"We'll hit the base the morning of the day that Zabuza will most likely attack Start with the patrol and first floor, then clear the basement before going after Gatou and forcing him to open the safe and signing over his business." Sasuke sighed and rubbed the back of his neck.

"This is starting to actually sound troublesome." Naruto chuckled as he opened the door to Tazuna's house.

"Careful, otouto, you're starting to sound like the Nara's." The Uchiha frowned at being compared to the laziest clan in the village.

* * *

After dinner had become very tense, most of it attributed to Naruto's very angry appearance and the slight amount of KI he was giving off after having heard Inari and Kaiza's story. Everyone jumped when he abruptly stood.

"N-Naruto, where are you going?" Hinata asked softly. He didn't turn to her as he walked off.

"I'm going to prove to Inari that heroes do exist." Hinata looked ready to go after him before Sasuke held her back, shaking his head at her when she looked back at him.

* * *

Naruto's kunai slid deeply into the throat of his victim, the man gurgling as his life blood spurted onto the ground. Naruto flicked the blood off his kunai as his clone made the earth swallow the body with a simple jutsu. Sasuke walked up to him after finishing with sealing up all the weapons.

"You were pretty violent tonight, aniue." Naruto turned a cold glare to Sasuke, immediately regretting it when the Uchiha flinched slightly. Naruto's gaze softened and he sighed as he returned the kunai to his holster.

"I'm sorry, otouto, it's just that story Tazuna told us got me so angry." The two quickly destroyed the building with a well timed fire and wind jutsu.

"Really? I didn't notice," Sasuke joked weakly. "What about in particular?" Sasuke asked more seriously. Naruto shook his head as they watched the building burn and collapse in on itself.

"I'm angry at Gatou for killing Kaiza, Im angry at Inari for blaming Kaiza, I'm angry at Tazuna and Tsunami for not doing anything about that, and I'm angry at myself for being so angry at Inari and his family." He clenched his fist after he used another quick jutsu to bury the charred remains of the building, even growing a few trees to make it look as if there had never been a building there at all.

"...Is it wrong of me to feel angry at them?" Naruto asked quietly. Sasuke shook his head.

"No. It only makes sense that you would feel angry when your own father was a hero, giving up his life to protect the village and entrusting you with keeping the kyuubi contained. Of course you'd be angry at someone who would blame them for dying and spitting on the legacy they left." Naruto had absorbed Sasuke's worked slowly, their travel back to Tazuna's quiet and less tense the more Naruto relaxed. They stopped at the clearing that had become their regular team meeting place.

"Time for a spar, right?" Naruto returned Sasuke's smirk.

"Of course. You know as well as I do that that job wasn't hard enough for either of us to even get a scratch." Sasuke chuckled as they got into their stances, his sharingan rotating wildly.

"Gotta at least look like we trained a little bit right, aniue?" Naruto grinned.

"Right, otouto." And with that, the two charged at each other.

* * *

(Fifth day)

"It's never not disturbing to see such human depravity." Naruto stated with a frown, examining the slaves that had been moved out of the cartels and given gas masks as Sasuke burned the second of them down. It had taken them five nights to destroy most of Gatou's underground empire and Gatou was none the wiser. The idiot didn't take paper reports and he didn't trust messengers so he usually came down to check on the operations himself, but he only checks his operations at the same time every few months. His drug warehouses are the only ones he checks every month and that visit was paid only a week before they had arrived, giving them plenty of time to destroy everything.

"All that's left is one more cartel then the main base." Sasuke said, scowling at the poor state of the slaves. Their clothes were nothing more than rags and what was visible of their bodies beneath layers of dirt looked emaciated. "Are we doing the same with them like with the other?" The slaves looked frightened at this, expecting the worst.

"Yeah, our clones are going to escort them to the cooperating village in Fire country and get them the fresh start they need, just like with the other slaves," Naruto remarked idly as he thought about tomorrow night's plans, ignorant to the slaves' happy, relieved and grateful faces. "They've ben informed that the Gatou refugees will stop coming in two days." Sasuke nodded.

"The day we hit the base." Naruto used a water jutsu to douse the flames, following up with some earth and wood jutsu to make it appear as if the place was untouched by man, just like all the other buildings they'd destroyed.

"The day we hit the base," Naruto repeated.

* * *

(Morning of the sixth day)

"You'll catch cold sleeping in a place like this." Naruto didn't bother getting up, opening one eye to look at the effeminate boy.

"And who might you be?" The he-she smiled.

"My name is Haku, I came out here to pick some medicinal herbs for a sick friend." Naruto sat up, rubbing at his eyes with one hand to wipe away the bleariness that came with them having been closed for hours from sleep. "Would you like some help?" He asked courteously.

"Oh, that would be appreciated, thank you very much." Naruto noticed that most of the herbs were stimulants that would help along Zabuza's recovery from being in his death state, along with some plants that would help with minor burns, most likely a side effect of Zabuza being electrocuted. After a short time picking herbs in comfortable silence, Haku decided to start a conversation.

"So what are you doing at this time of the morning?"

"Training," Naruto replied automatically, it being his response to most questions of such nature if it were not Sasuke asking.

"You...that head protector...could you be a ninja?" Naruto smiled.

_'This guy's a good actor.'_ "Yeah, you're pretty observant."

"Wow, you're incredible," he praised freely. "Why are you training?"

"Because I want to become stronger." _'Why else would people train?'_

"Hmm...but ou already look plenty strong."

_'You would know, wouldn't you?' _"No, I need to become even stronger." The boy frowned slightly.

"Why...is that?" Naruto paused to look at his hands, clenching them into fists.

"To protect those precious to me." He gave a pretty smile, a genuine smile.

"I see you know how to truly become strong." Naruto looked at him questioningly, a question he answered without him needing to ask. "When a person has something important to protect...that's when they can truly become strong." Naruto shared his sincere smile.

"Yeah...I understand that very well." Haku picked up his basket and started to leave.

"You will become strong...let's meet again somewhere." Naruto smirked at his retreating figure.

"Yeah...sure." Sasuke had appeared the moment Haku was leaving, the Uchiha looking back to stare suspiciously at his retreating figure. It was quiet in the clearing for a while until Haku was out of hearing range.

"Did he do anything?" Naruto only shook his head. "Well then, let's go back...but first a spar." Sasuke said, smirking as he got into position. Naruto only rolled his eyes.

"Your way of relieving stress always makes me question your sanity."

"Just shut up and fight, aniue." Now it was Naruto's turn to smirk as he got into position.

"If you say so, otouto."

* * *

Naruto and Sasuke jumped in through the bedroom window to see Kakashi doing one finger push-ups with Tazuna and Hinata sitting on his back and legs. _'Must be loosening his muscles,'_ both Sasuke and Naruto thought.

"I wanted to ask you earlier but...why are you still here when I lied to you about this mission?"

"To abandon your duty is not courageous. Below courage, there is nothing." Naruto smiled warmly at the words. "Those are the previous hokage's words. That is the way of the shinobi. Shinobi don't just move because of money alone." Sasuke smirked as Kakashi got up, Tazuna and Hinata having gotten off.

"So you actually can sound like a serious shinobi sometimes, Sensei. I was beginning to think that that trash you read was starting to rot your brain." Kakashi clutched at his chest in mock pain.

"Why must my cute little genin be so hurtful with their words?" Sasuke only scoffed while Naruto laughed aloud, Hinata giggling softly.

* * *

(later at dinner)

"Oh...you guys are finally back. What's this? You guys look super dirty and worn out." True to Tazuna's words, the two looked extremely worn out, Naruto supporting some of Sasuke's weight since Naruto had kicked his head a little too hard during their spar.

_'I'll fix that later...'_ Naruto chuckled. "Gotta train hard to get stronger." Tazuna chuckled as well.

"I'm also worn out from today's bridge work. At any rate, the bridge is almost complete." Tsunami came over with a pot of tea.

"Naruto-kun, Sasuke-kun, Father. Don't overdo it ok?" She questioned sternly in a motherly tone. Naruto just groaned, slumping against the table, actually tired, not from chakra exhaustion or physical exhaustion really, but the search and destroy mission was starting to take its toll mentally. Constantly going on demanding missions with only enough break to train and eat wasn't exactly healthy for ones psych. The last time Naruto had really relaxed since they started the S&D mission was when he meditated the night he'd heard Kaiza's story.

_'I'm soooo meditating after dinner tonight...' _The blond noticed Inari started to cry after glaring at him and decided to address the boy. "What is it?" He asked tiredly. The boy stood, slamming his hands on the table.

"Why do you guys bother to try so hard?! No matter how hard you train, you're still no match for Gatou's men! No matter what glorious claims you make or how hard you work, when facing the strong, the weak will only end up getting killed!" Naruto ignored the depressing but passionate speech, replying dispassionately to piss him off.

"Whatever gaki. I'm not like you."

"I'd hate to be like you! You don't know anything about this country, yet you're being so nosy!" He shouted. "What the hell do you know about me?! I'm different from you! You're always so laid back and acting so cheerful! You don't know how hard life can be!" Team seven took a sharp intake of breath at that, hearing Naruto's patience snap.

"So it's alright for you to pose as the star of a tragedy and cry all day?" Naruto asked quietly, his team not daring to breath. Naruto straightened, giving the boy an angry glare. "You don't know the _meaning_ of a hard life, you stupid crybaby." Naruto did not shout, but he did not need to, his tone and glare were harsh enough that Inari flinched away. Naruto stood, tense, and walked out without another word.

* * *

(Morning of the eighth day, predicted day of Zabuza's attack)

"Sasuke watch out!" Naruto slammed his hands into the ground, summoning a large wall to block multiple projectiles and jutsu. Sasuke was panting heavily, having been throwing out multiple large scale jutsu for a while now, his kage bunshin still running around causing havoc, though they'd been diminished greatly. Naruto cursed when some more of his own clones were dispelled.

"I can't wait to kill that sensor that ousted us," Sasuke growled out. Naruto chuckled weakly.

"Yeah, no kidding. Thanks to her this has become an all out battlefield. We've managed to take out the twenty thugs, two of the chunin, five of the samurai, and one of the jonin." Naruto threw a great waterfall technique at the group of enemies that had circled around the wall. "Add six more samurai to that list." Sasuke slashed at the two chunin that had managed to avoid the attack, killing them instantly with his blade.

"And two chunin. That leaves twenty five samurai and two jonin." Naruto looked at the panting Sasuke in concern. Because of that stupid sensor, these incompetent idiots had been able to dodge or effectively counter most of their attacks, destroying most of their kage bunshin before they could even attack. Naruto would have found their coordination impressive if he wasn't so irritated.

Naruto growled audibly when the kage bunshin he'd left with Tsunami and Inari dispelled, the memories of Gatou's personal samurai's attempted kidnapping of the two. He was cheered up and encouraged by Inari's act of bravery, even though it could have gotten him killed, he decided to protect his precious people no matter the cost.

"Otouto," Sasuke didn't spare him a glance as he cut down another samurai, blocking two swords shortly after.

"Yeah?" Naruto turned a feral grin to him, cutting down the two samurai that attacked him.

"I don't think I want to fight them anymore." Sasuke looked at him as if he were crazy for a moment before his face paled in realization. Naruto's chakra rose, making the enemies step back on the word of the sensor. Naruto's grin only grew wider as he but his thumb and slammed his right hand down into the ground.

"Kuchiyose no Jutsu!" A giant cloud of smoke erupted over the battlefield and once it cleared, the ragtag group of enemies paled at the sight. There, coiled behind the two skilled shinobi, was a large blue dragon. "Hello, Mizuchi*. I would like to introduce you to the men who work for the one responsible for all the bodies that have been dumped in rivers lately. You have free reign to do with them as you wish." The dragon's half lidded eyes snapped open at that, revealing their amazing cerulean blue color, eerily similar to Naruto's own eyes.

"I see. I thank you for the opportunity, Naruto-sama," the blue dragon said politely, his posture anything but as he took in the sight of the small group of enemies. His muzzle opened in a toothy grin, revealing very large and very sharp ivory teeth. "I will enjoy tearing you to shreds," he growled right before flying to the group who at this point were running, scattering everywhere, completely forgetting who they were supposed to be fighting and protecting. Sasuke approached his maniacally laughing brother.

"Er...aniue? Don't you think you went a little overboard? There were only twenty four of them left..." Naruto shrugged.

"I don't care. I got tired of fighting, they were pissing me off, and we don't have time to fight them properly anyways. The others are already fighting Zabuza at the bridge with our clones. If we want this to end without too many injuries. Let's just drag Gatou out of his little hiding spot and go already." Sasuke sighed at Naruto's almost whiny behavior and tone, but didn't argue since it was true they didn't have any time left.

Kakashi, Hinata, and their clones are doing their best to stall for time and them messing around here will only delay them. So with another sigh, Sasuke followed his brother into the near empty base, ignoring the screams of utter pain and terror that were filling the air behind him.

* * *

"WHAT?! Those two gakis we've been fighting the entire time were just kage bunshin?!" Zabuza yelled out, completely enraged. Kakashi managed to look sheepish, eye-smiling and scratching the back of his head.

"Well, technically they were super-chakra reinforced kage bunshin, but yeah, they were still kage bunshin." Hinata glared at the two tired enemy ninja with her byakugan.

"And you weren't just fighting them, you were fighting Kakashi-sensei and I as well." Zabuza growled as he lifted his blade to rest on his shoulders.

"If the two gakis weren't fighting here then where the hell are they?"

"Right here." Zabuza jumped and swung his blade behind him on instinct, only hitting air. laughter turned his attention back to the front, revealing the blond and the Uchiha standing next to their comrades, the blond carrying a squirming sack on one shoulder.

"My, someone's very jumpy. You must be pretty tired if you didn't sense us sneaking up on you." Zabuza was about to attack again when the blond dropped the sack. "Before we get back to it, I'd like to give you a gift." Naruto opened the sack to reveal a bound and gagged Gatou. Zabuza's eyes bulged at that.

"If you're wondering why we have Gatou, then I'll answer." Their attention turned to Sasuke. "Naruto and I have spent the last seven days destroying Gatou's underground businesses in wave and this morning we hit his main base, killed the rest of his men, and forced him to sign over all his money and businesses to Naruto here." The blond kneeled down and slapped the man's cheek, making him let out muffled shrieks of indignity.

"Turns out your friend here never planned on paying you. He was going to ambush you at the bridge with a bunch of thugs and killing you for your bounty. Oh and he also wanted to get back at your son Haku for breaking his arm or something." Zabuza growled while Haku blushed at being referred to as Zabuza's son.

"He's not my son, gaki. He's just a tool." Naruto just snorted.

"Yeah, sure, keep telling yourself that Zabuza. Maybe if you say it enough, you'll actually believe it!" Before Zabuza could speak...or attack, Naruto threw Gatou over to Zabuza's feet. "Seeing as you're the most recent victim of Gatou's backstabbing schemes. We decided to let you do the honors of killing him and seeing as you no longer need to kill Tazuna, we are no longer enemies." Zabuza eyed them all suspiciously, nonchalantly chopping off Gatou's head with his zanbato.

"What do you guys really want?" Naruto stood and held his hands up in mock surrender.

"Nothing! We were just going to offer you a place at Konoha, you know, the whole 'you don't have to be on the run anymore' thing." Haku seemed like he'd like that and Zabuza thought about it for all of two seconds.

"Sorry, kid, but I've got other plans." Sasuke crossed his arms.

"If you're talking about your goal to kill the mizukage and take of Kirigakure, then you're out of luck. The civil war's over. The mizukage's been killed and replaced with a woman called Mei Terumi, it seems she was in charge of the rebels." Zabuza's eyes bulged at that information.

"M-Mei Terumi?!" He shouted incredulously. Naruto raised a brow.

"Yeah, you know her?" Zabuza didn't answer the question.

"Hey, on second thought gaki, I think I'll take you up on that offer to join Konoha," the others sweat dropped at his sudden change of mind. "So...Konoha wouldn't let anyone from another village...say Kirigakure for example...er, kill me for personal reasons right**?" Zabuza actually asked kind of nervously. The group sweat dropped again.

_'Yeah, he definitely knows Mei Terumi somehow...'_ "No, don't worry about that."

"And what about Haku? How do I know your village won't force him into anything because of his bloodline or force me to teach kenjutsu for that matter."

"We've thought of that and you have to viable options available. You can join one of my clans as vassals or I can legally adopt you into one of my clans to let you become a member." Zabuza raised a nonexistent brow at the gaki.

"_One _of your clans?" Naruto nodded, but Sasuke's the one who answered.

"He's the heir to the Senju clan and sole heir and prince of the Uzumaki clan." Zabuza's eyes widened at that.

"Screw Senju, I'll be an Uzumaki! They were known for their kenjutsu skill and there's no way in hell I'm becoming anyone's vassal!" Naruto nodded, grinning.

"Then it's settled! The Yuki and Momochi will become a part of the Uzumaki clan, so don't worry about having to change your surnames, you'll just be adding Uzumaki to it. The paperwork's already been prepared so all you two have to do is sign!" The ex-missing-nin squinted his eyes at the blond.

"Exactly how long have you been planning this, gaki?"

"Since we found out the enemy was Gatou and you were a part of the mission!" Naruto replied cheerfully.

"And that's Gaki-sama to you now, Zabuza. Naruto is after all the clan heir and future head of your new clan," Sasuke added. At that, Zabuza actually laughed.

"Maybe joining you guys won't be so bad."

* * *

***Mizuchi is a Japanese river dragon and water deity. He doesn't like it when rivers are messed with. I would also like to say that he is not the boss summon of dragons, but he is Naruto's familiar, like with Naruto and Gamakichi in canon, Mizuchi is the partner that Naruto is most attuned with and will summon the most. He will summon other dragons, but he has to get in larger scale fights first.**

****Yes, Zabuza does know Mei Terumi. They are going to be childhood friends and one of Zabuza's main reasons for rebelling since he knew Mei had bloodlines. They will have a romantic history, but it will have been a one-sided crush on Mei's part before Zabuza defected. She grew out of the crush and now only sees Zabuza as a close friend. Of course she's angry at him for leaving her there in the middle of a civil war and trying to start a revolution in the first place because he could have gotten killed, which is hypocritical of her, but she doesn't care about that part, plus she actually succeeded. **

The rest of the Wave mission, or at least the more important points of the end. I feel like this chapter wasn't very good, I kept thinking it wasn't good enough as I wrote it and if that's the case then sorry. I feel like I'm in a slump right now even though I want to keep writing this story, which I will. Hopefully that feeling was just for this chapter or something...


	10. Ch 10 Meetings & an Exam

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto

AN: I finally bought a new charger for my laptop yesterday so I now have my baby back 3, at least until something else wrong with it happens. My laptops a survivor, it's been through viruses, sporadic overheating, and a faulty charger. It shows just how much I use and abuse it, I feel bad about it but I love it too much to give it a break sometimes. Well onto the story...

* * *

"This is the break you were talking about?" Sasuke asked, his eyebrow twitching in irritation as he looked at all the other genin of Konoha. Kakashi eye smiled at his team.

"Don't you remember Naruto recommending that we train with other genin teams so you could get used to working with ninja you might be working with in the future?" Sasuke glared at his sensei.

"I think that was before we realized we were at jonin level and started doing c-rank missions and higher!" Sasuke hissed at him under his breath as the other teams approached them.

"Sasuke-kun~!" Sasuke immediately stepped aside, making Ino fall to the ground, flat on her stomach. Both Sasuke and Ino were surprised when Sakura didn't join in on the attempted hug tackle.

"Looks like you lost one of your fangirls, eh, Sasuke?" The genin all looked at the blond questioningly, wondering who he was when they noticed the whisker marks on his cheeks. Everyone gaped at him, Shikamaru only sighing as he ambled up to Naruto, slouching with his hands in his pockets. Sasuke scowled.

"I wish I could lose them all. They're irritating."

"Decided to drop the act, Naruto?" Naruto grinned at the pineapple haired genin.

"Yep." The Nara just sighed.

"Troublesome blonds."

"Naruto, is that really you?" The feral looking boy with a puppy on his head asked. "What happened to the orange wearing idiot from academy?" He asked loudly.

"The Naruto you knew never existed, fleabag." Kiba turned to Sasuke with a growl.

"What was that, you emo bastard?!" Shino grabbed his teammate's arm, stopping him from attacking.

"I do not think it would be wise to attack him, Kiba." He adjusted his glasses with his other hand. "According to my kikaichu, his chakra level and control is at high jonin level, possibly anbu." Kiba gaped while a mini-Guy suddenly spoke up.

"YOSH! Sasuke-san's flames of youth are burning brightly! I challenge you Uchiha Sasuke, to a match!" Sasuke grimaced at the green spandex clad boy in a bowl haircut.

"That's it. I'm out of here."

"Sasuke, wait!" Naruto's shout came too late as Sasuke had already left in a shun shin. Naruto sighed.

"I'm sorry, Lee-kun. I've heard a lot about you from Guy-sensei. It was nice meeting you, but I have to go and talk to Sasuke about his temper tantrums..."

"Before you go, Naruto..." Naruto looked to Shikamaru questioningly. "Why don't you and Sasuke come over sometimes to play shogi, if it's not too troublesome for you guys." Naruto's eyes widened at the invitation, it being the first time since Sasuke that someone has invited him to their house. He smiled warmly at the Nara.

"Sure, Shikamaru, we'll send a kage bunshin ahead if we plan on coming." Shikamaru nodded, giving him a lazy wave before Naruto shunshin'ed away as well.

"Did Naruto just do a shunshin? When could that idiot do such an advanced technique? He can't even do a simple clone!" Ino shouted in denial.

"I believe it should be fairly obvious at this point that Naruto hid his true self from us and the village during our academy days." Shino stated calmly.

"Shut it, bug boy! No one asked your opinion!" Ino yelled.

"Shino's right, Ino." Ino turned to her pink haired rival in shock. "What do we really know about Naruto or Sasuke for that matter, that they didn't choose to show us. It's not like we ever made an effort to get to know them better. All we did was put Naruto down and pester Sasuke for dates." Sakura said guiltily.

"Wha-?! If this is some kind of trick to get me to give up on Sasuke, it isn't going to work!" Sakura shook her head.

"No, Ino. I really just don't like Sasuke that way anymore. Kurenai-sensei and her friend Anko-sensei really gave me a stern talking to about my behavior and my reasons to wanting to become a kunoichi. The only reason I liked Sasuke is because I thought he was cool and mysterious and all the other girls liked him too. That's not a real reason to like someone. After realizing how much time I wasted going after an infatuation and neglecting my training, I decided to start taking my training seriously. I may never have as much chakra as other ninja but I have really good chakra control and I'm good at memorizing things so I decided to start studying medical ninjutsu." She turned to her ex-friend.

"I wanted to tell you that I regret ending our friendship over a boy...and when you get over him and start taking your training seriously too...I hope we can become friends again." Kurenai smiled proudly at her female student, Ino gaping openly at her in shock. Asuma took a drag of his cigarette.

"That's some good advice," the bearded man commented idly, "I'd consider following it."

"Yeah!" Kiba shouted. "I'm gonna train way harder than before and catch up to those two! There's no way I'm falling behind!" Kiba shouted excitedly. Ten Ten grinned at their juniors, Neji snorting at their behavior. Kakashi eye smiled at the scene, Hinata giggling at them beside him.

"Looks like the next generation is going to surpass us, huh?"

"Well said, my youthful rival!" Guy shouted, his teeth gleaming as he grinned.

"The will of fire is definitely strong in them. Naruto especially. I knew that kid was special."

"I can't believe that he fooled the entire village into thinking he was an idiot." Kurenai said.

"You included?" Hinata asked, a little icily. Kurenai had the decency to look ashamed and flushed slightly. Kakashi just chuckled.

"Everyone seems to forget the ninja saying 'look underneath the underneath', don't they?" Asuma puffed out some smoke as he looked at the sky.

"It's not that they didn't look underneath the underneath. It's that they didn't bother to look at all," Asuma stated sadly. The mood around the jonin, and Hinata, saddened at that, all of them knowing what he meant. Shikamaru and Neji had heard as well, not having been focusing on the rambunctious activities of their fellow genin and both wondered exactly what they meant by that comment.

* * *

Naruto clicked his tongue in irritation as he walked through the village, ignoring the looks of confusion, shock, and general disbelief he was getting from the villagers. _'Sasuke's hiding from me on purpose because he knows I'm going to reprimand him about his behavior and now the villagers are either looking at me like they just saw a ghost or like they can't believe it's really me...Damn otouto, I'm sooo going to dish out some punishment when I find him...'_ Naruto's brow began to twitch when the square rock that had been following him for a while, still hadn't stopped following him.

"Ok, that's it!" He whirled to face the poor disguise, pointing accusingly at it. "What kind of rock is square with two holes?! Anyone could see through that!" Three kids crawled out from under the box, making Naruto sweat drop.

"That's the man I view as my rival!" The boy in the center exclaimed, his arms crossed. Naruto just sighed.

"Oh, Konohamaru, it's you..." the blond noticed the three wearing matching goggles, much like the ones he used to wear. "What's with the goggles?" The boy gave a toothy grin, grabbing the accessory and adjusting it on his head.

"Hehe, we're copying the old you, aniki!" Naruto flushed a little, slightly happy that the kid held him in such high admiration and thinking that it was cute. He was about to answer when Sasuke decided to make an appearance.

"Hey, what are you doing with these kids? I thought you were looking for me." Sasuke stated in irritation. Naruto raised a brow at the Uchiha.

"Isn't it strange that you decide to stop hiding from me when Konohamaru captures my attention and calls me aniki? If I didn't know any better, I'd say you were jealous?" Sasuke flushed and sputtered, struggling to respond when Konohamaru glared at the Uchiha.

"Yeah! You're just jealous I'm a cuter brother than you!" Sasuke turned to glare at the kid.

"What?! That's ridiculous. Why would I wanna look like some snot-nosed brat!" Lightning crackled between the two while the pig-tailed girl approached Naruto.

"Um, leader, are you free?" Naruto shrugged after thinking about it.

"I suppose so. Sasuke's decided to show himself and I didn't really have anything planned." It was true. Kakashi had told them to clear their schedule so that they could have a 'break' from their training and missions today, but that plan was kind of shot when it turned out to be meeting up with the other genin teams. Sasuke isn't exactly social and Naruto wasn't entirely comfortable with it either, despite it being his idea to begin with, since his graduating class still hadn't seen the real him.

He hadn't exactly been looking forward to confronting them so they could ask him a bunch of questions and call him names. Sasuke especially would not like them bugging Naruto and disrespecting him in general with their ignorance. It's the reason he 'stormed off' angrily. For one, Sasuke was actually irritated at Kakashi for having sprung it on them and his sudden exit gave Naruto a chance to leave early as well so it was a win win situation for the two.

"Does that mean you can play ninja with us?" Naruto smiled at the girl and ruffled her hair, making her giggle and blush.

"Yeah, I guess I can." Konohamaru quit his glaring contest to jump up in celebration.

"Alright! Aniki's gonna play with us!" He grinned and pointed at Sasuke rudely. "Take that you stupid duck butt Uchiha!" A tick mark appeared on Sasuke's head, a dark aura appearing around him.

"Uh, Konohamaru?" Naruto stage whispered to the boy.

"Y-yeah, aniki?" Kono, whispered back nervously.

"I think you should run now!" He shouted, an order which the children took to heart, running away quickly and making Naruto laugh out loud. He looked to Sasuke, who hadn't moved from where he was standing, looking satisfied with himself. "That was a little mean, don't you think?" The Uchiha only smirked.

"The little brat deserves it." Before Naruto could reply, both their heads snapped up when they heard Kono's scream in the distance. Both vanished in a flash of speed, reappearing in front of the corner Kono and his friends had disappeared behind, revealing two Suna ninja standing in the middle of the empty path, the black-clad boy holding Konohamaru up by his scarf.

"That hurt you little piece of shit." Naruto looked reproachfully at the Suna shinobi.

"Watch your mouth around kids, catboy, they're already impressionable enough." The Suna shinobi only gave the blond a cursory glance, not dropping Konohamaru.

"Let's play a little before the boss comes." He tightened his grip on Konohamaru, making the poor boy grunt in pain. Naruto was about to move when the Suna-nin sent chakra strings to stop him, however Sasuke deflected them by drawing his blade, lacing it with chakra so he could cut the invisible strings.

"Aniue, allow me to handle this. This guy's not worth your attention." Sasuke smirked when the nin actually looked angry at this, but Sasuke spoke before he could. "I suggest you put down Hokage-sama's grandson, unless you want to start a war between allied villages?" The nin paled and immediately dropped the boy as if he were an activate explosion seal.

Konohamaru immediately ran to safety, standing behind Naruto like his two friends. "The Uchiha isn't such a bad guy if he respects aniki so much." The Suna shinobi grit his teeth in anger and frustration at the Uchiha's smug face, the Suna kunoichi's blush obvious infatuation with Sasuke not helping his temper.

"I hate show-offs like you the most," he stated as he started to pull off the wrapped bundle on his back.

"Kankuro, stop it." Everyone's attention turned to the red head that was hanging upside down on the nearby tree. "You're an embarrassment to our village." The two Suna-nin froze, Kankuro giving the boy a nervous grin.

"Ga...Gaara."

**_'Hey, kit. That Gaara kid has the Ichibi in him. That stupid tanuki's probably been driving his container crazy. He doesn't know when to shut_**_ up.'_ Naruto's eyes widened.

_'Kurama! Where the hell have you been? You haven't talked in weeks.'_ The fox only scoffed.

**_'No offense, kit, but your life is boring as shit. Study, train, missions, study, train, sleep, and repeat. Seriously even your hobbies are boring. Meditation, gardening, and painting? Seriously, kit, rob a bank, destroy a country, or even fuck someone for Kami's sake. Do SOMETHING interesting!_ **Kurama complained loudly. Naruto mentally rolled his eyes at the fox.

"Losing yourself in a fight, how pathetic...Why do you think we came to Konoha?" The red head questioned, though Naruto was only half paying attention.

_'I don't care if you think my life is boring. I don't exist to keep you entertained, besides, you've been doing just fine the past few weeks haven't you? You haven't exactly complained before. Especially after I changed the scenery in there.'_

"Listen, Gaara, they started it and-" Kankuro tried to defend, pointing an accusatory finger at their group.

**_'True, this little forest simulation you concocted has served to please me, the game you keep re-spawning is also rather fun, but it gets old rather quickly.'_ **

"Shut up..." Gaara said coldly, "or I'll kill you." He finished mercilessly, making Kankuro flinch and shake.

_'It's not my fault you get bored easily then. For someone as old as you, you certainly have very little patience and maturity.'_

"Ok, I'm sorry," Kankuro replied shakily.

"I'm also really sorry," the kunoichi added, despite her not really having been involved in any way.

**_'Shut up, gaki, or I'll kill you!'_**Naruto mentally scoffed when Kurama repeated the vassal of the Ichibi.

_'Like you could, fuzzbucket. You know I could just use my chakra to lull you to sleep. you look so cute curled up in a ball, your tails acting like a blanket.'_ Kurama growled, but said nothing more. Naruto knew it was because the bijuu was embarrassed. The red head looked at Sasuke.

"Sorry to you guys." He shunshin'ed in a whirl of sand, reappearing between the other two Suna-nin. "It looks like we got here too early, but...we didn't come here to play around." He turned to Sasuke. "You, what is your name?" The Uchiha smirked, re-sheathing his blade.

"Sasuke Uchiha." His smirk turned into a frown and he tensed when the red head turned to his aniue.

"You...are strange. Mother finds your chakra very soothing." The boy's nonexistent brows furrowed before they smoothed and he turned. "Let's go," he said, signaling to the other two Suna-nin. Naruto chuckled when they were out of view, Sasuke's frown still prominent.

"Shukaku probably doesn't even realize who I hold." The Uchiha's frown deepened.

"Number one? What is a container doing entering the chunin exams, especially one being held at an allied village? I would understand them wanting to flaunt their power at other villages, but bringing him here..." Sasuke stopped when Naruto minutely shook his head. Konohamaru tugged at Naruto's jacket.

"Neh, aniki, what are you guys talking about?" Kono asked innocently. The blond kneeled and gave the boy a warm smile, patting his head.

"Nothing, Kono, just some boring politics. Why don't you and your friends go home for now. Also try to stay indoors for the next few days, the streets are going to get a lot more dangerous with so many foreign nin walking around, got it?" The three saluted Naruto.

"Understood, aniki/leader!" The three ran off in high spirits, as expected of kids their age. The blond's smile turned into a serious frown when they disappeared from sight.

"Suna is up to something." Sasuke glanced at the blond.

"Looks like this year's chunin exams are going to be interesting. I wonder when Kakashi-sensei's going to tell us about it." Naruto shrugged, his serious demeanor returning to its more relaxed one.

"Knowing him probably tomorrow after he comes to the team meeting three hours late with a lame excuse like always." Sasuke snorted at that.

"Yeah, probably."

* * *

"About damn time." The Uchiha stated as he snatched away the chunin exam application from Kakashi's outstretched hand. The jonin eye smiled at him while his other two genin took their applications much more slowly.

"My someone was impatient for these." Sasuke glared at the jonin...who expertly ignored it. "If you want to take it then sign those and turn them in at Room 301 by 4pm tomorrow. That's all." He said before he suddenly shunshin'ed away. Hinata huffed at the dismissal.

"He could have at least said goodbye." Naruto pat Hinata's shoulder in comfort.

"You know he's too socially awkward for that, Hinata." The Hyuga lightened up and giggled at that.

"That's true. Well, I'll see you two tomorrow. I'm going to train with Hanabi at home." Naruto nodded and waved as she left. He turned to Sasuke.

"Are you going to sleep over at the Uzumaki compound again today?" The Uchiha smiled.

"Yeah, I already told my vassals at home. Today's 'family night' after all. Why would I miss a chance to watch you interact with an effeminate ice user, a crazy ex-swordsman of the mist, and the future hokage?" Naruto laughed out loud at that.

"Well, if you put it that way."

* * *

"Kotetsu and Izumo? What are they doing here?" Hinata asked quietly as they examined the second floor.

"The gate guards?" Sasuke questioned. Naruto smiled when he noticed the genjutsu they were casting.

"They're also a part of the T&I team. Looks like they're weeding out the weaker teams already." Sasuke scoffed.

"So those two are examiners? This exam is going to be cakewalk." Sasuke half joked as they passed by the group to move up to the third floor.

"Don't be so sure, otouto, I have a feeling that something big is going to happen."

"Sasuke Uchiha!" The three looked up to see Lee on the balcony above. Sasuke half turned, his hands in his pockets.

"What is it?"

"Will you...fight me right here?" He asked with a serious expression.

"A fight...right now?"

"Yes." Lee jumped down from the second floor and got into a ready stance. "I want to fight you. I want to test my techniques...against the offspring of the genius ninja clan." Hinata glanced at the clock on the wall.

"Ah, Sasuke, don't. There are only thirty minutes until the meeting," she informed worriedly. She didn't want her team to be late. Sasuke only smirked as he prepared to charge Lee.

"I'll be done in less than five minutes."

"Sasuke." The Uchiha froze at the commanding tone of the blond. "Listen to Hinata." He barked in anger. "We do not fight fellow Konoha nin." Cold sweat ran down Sasuke's neck.

_'Shit, I made him angry...I can't believe I forgot about Naruto's dislike for internal disputes...' _He straightened. "Sorry, Lee, looks like we won't be fighting after all." He turned slowly to Naruto who had his arms crossed as he looked at the Uchiha with a deep frown. Sasuke swallowed loudly, bowing his head slightly in shame at having disappointed the blond.

"Gomen, aniue," he muttered softly, too quiet for Lee to hear, but loud enough for Naruto. The blond kept his frown for a moment longer before his face softened, his stance less tense, letting his arms fall back to his side.

"Don't let it happen again." Sasuke nodded sullenly before Naruto turned to address Lee. "I am sorry to stop your fight before it even begins, but I don't want us to be late for the chunin exams and I want you to be in top form for them, after all you would be a worthy opponent for Sasuke. I also believe your sensei would find your challenge very unyouthful and against his rules." Lee gasped and snapped to attention, saluting the blond.

"That is too true! Thank you my youthful friend for correcting my unyouthfulness! I will look forward to fighting Sasuke in the exam! Until then!" Lee jumped back onto the balcony of the second floor, leaving the trio.

"Aniue," Naruto only gave a soft smile to Sasuke.

"Let's just head up Sasuke, Hinata. We have an exam to take after all." The three walked in comfortable silence as they walked to room 301, their eyes widening when they saw their sensei standing in front of the doors.

"Kakashi-sensei, what are you doing here?" Hinata asked, curious. The silver haired jonin eye smiled at the three.

"Oh, nothing much, just came to wish you guys good luck before you went in." Sasuke smirked.

"Do you really think we need it?" Kakashi chuckled.

"No, but it's the thought that counts. Well, don't let me keep you, go ahead and walk on in." Naruto grinned as Kakashi stepped aside.

"Thanks, Sensei." The three opened the doors and were immediately hit with the KI of most of the occupants of the room. Naruto growled low in his throat, the sound only audible to his teammates as his own KI rose enough to cancel theirs out. Hinata frowned at their welcome.

"I hate bullies."

"Sasuke-kun~." The Uchiha paled and narrowly dodged a purple and blond bullet. Ino recovered as if she hadn't just been blatantly rejected. "I see you're also taking these exams? As expected of someone as skilled as you!" Sasuke only rolled his eyes at the girl.

"Troublesome." Naruto grinned as Shikamaru and Choji ambled over to them.

"Hey, Shika, your sensei recommend you guys too?" Shikamaru gave a long suffering sigh as Choji munched on some chips, like always.

"Yeah, troublesome senseis."

"Yahoo! I found you!" A familiar loudmouth shouted. Sakura smiled politely at them all as her team joined them.

"Hello again."

"Well, well, looks like everyone has assembled again," he commented with a wild grin.

"Geez, you guys too?" Shikamaru drawled out.

"I see all 9 of this year's rookie genin are taking the exam. I wonder how far we'll get, eh Sasuke, Naruto?" Sasuke smirked at the dog boy.

"You seem confident, Kiba." _'Overconfident as always,'_ he thought privately.

"We did lots of training, too. We won't lose to you!" Sasuke only scoffed, obviously unconvinced.

"Hey, you guys, you should be more quiet." Naruto visibly tensed at the appearance of the white haired genin, something his teammates noticed. "You guys are rookies just out of the academy right?" Sasuke and Hinata both examined the genin more closely, wondering about Naruto's behavior towards him. "Screaming like school girls...geez...this isn't a picnic."

"Who do you think you are?" Ino asked haughtily. The genin smiled.

"I'm Kabuto, but instead of that, look behind you."

"Behind?" Sakura asked. The rookies, doing as he asked, turned to see the team from Rain glaring death at them.

"Those guys behind you are from the Hidden Rain, they have short tempers. Everyone is nervous about the exams, quiet down before you cause a scene." He reached for his pouch, making Naruto's hand inch towards his holster, Sasuke's hand touch the hilt of his blade, and Hinata's byakugan flare for a second, only for them to return to their previous postures when it seemed he didn't plan to attack.

"Well, I can't blame you. You're clueless rookies. You remind me of how I used to be." Sakura squinted her eyes suspiciously at the genin.

"Kabuto-san... right?"

"Yeah."

"So this is your second time taking the exam?"

"Nope...my seventh time." Naruto frowned at that, Sasuke and Hinata as well. There was definitely something off about this genin. "This exam is held twice a year so this is my fourth year."

"Wow, so you know a lot about this exam." He smirked.

"That's right." He chuckled and pulled out a stack of cards. "Then I'll share some info with you cute rookies...with these nin-info cards."

"Nin-info cards?" Sakura asked.

"They are basically cards which have info burned onto them with chakra. I have four years worth of info here. Over 200 cards." Ino crossed her arms.

"Do you have cards with info on individuals?" Everyone turned to her curiously. Why would she want to know that. Kabuto only chuckled.

"Someone you're worried about?...Of course, the info on all of this exam's participants isn't perfect, but I do have it. Even of you guys, say something about these guys and I'll take a look."

"Gaara of Suna." Sasuke stated.

"Naruto Uzumaki from Konoha!" Ino added. Sasuke sent a sharp glare at the girl, the others giving her strange looks as to why she was asking about an ally.

"Oh, you know their names, should be easy then." He swiped at the cards and pulled out two from the deck. "First is Gaara of Suna. Mission history: C-rank 8, B-rank 1. Wow, a B-rank as a genin...since he's a newcomer from a foreign country I don't have much info, but...it seems he's returned from all his missions without even a scratch." Sasuke frowned, unhappy that he didn't get any useful information.

"Next is Naruto Uzumaki from Konoha. Age: 12 years old. Was known as the Dead Last and failed the academy twice." The nearby nin listening in snickered at that, but they ignored the eavesdroppers. "Mission History:" Kabuto's eyes widened, "D-rank 19, C-rank 3, B-rank 1, A-rank 1, S-rank 1! Received a C turned S-rank mission with teammates Uchiha Sasuke and Hyuga Hinata when client was targeted by missing-nin Zabuza of Kirigakure! Not only did they complete their mission, Naruto got Zabuza and his apprentice to join Konoha by adopting them into the Uzumaki clan! Very little is known about his skill, but he is said to be competent in all fields of ninpo and a fuinjutsu master. It seems he also possesses a dragon summoning contract!" Team 7's eyes narrowed at Kabuto, wondering where and how he got all that information while the room gaped at them in open shock.

Kabuto was quick to get over his own shock, smirking at the group. "Konoha, Suna, Kusa, Taki, Oto... Many outstanding genin from the various hidden villages are here to take the exam. Well... Otogakure is a small village just created last year so there isn't much info, but... the rest of the hidden villages are filled with talented youngsters."

_'This guy...doesn't act or talk like a genin,'_ Naruto thought, _'and he has information that only the hokage, Sasuke and I know. No one else but me and them know about my A-rank mission with the traitor Mizuki...well, and that Cat anbu but she's not a spy.'_

_'...when I activated my byakugan...his chakra reserves were on par with Kakashi's...I should tell Sasuke and Naruto as soon as I am able.' _Hinata thought worriedly. It seemed Naruto had reason to be wary around this supposed genin. Team 7's eyes narrowed when they noticed the sound team about to attack Kabuto, and from what they observed of Kabuto, he knew it was coming as well...so why is he acting so surprised now that they are attacking him?

Kabuto jumped away from two thrown shuriken, quickly dodging a punch thrown by the one covered in bandages, some kind of fur on his back. Not a second later, his glasses broke to pieces and he doubled over, emptying the contents of his stomach. Sasuke's eyes narrowed at the scene.

_'This attack was obviously staged...and that attack. It didn't physically hit him, but he was still injured...it wasn't wind because the effects of the wind would at least be visible somehow on his clothes...I wonder what kind of trick he pulled...' _Sasuke wondered, analyzing the event that just occurred. A poof of smoke at the front of the room, along with a familiar voice, caught everyone's attention, especially team 7's.

"Quiet down, you worthless brats!"

* * *

AN: surprisingly no * notes for this chapter. I didn't feel a need to this time. Start of the chunin exams! Sorry about how little screen time the Konoha rookies get, it's just that they never bothered to get to know Sasuke or Naruto in academy so they don't have a lot to do with them right now, plus they still have the preconceived notion that Naruto's an idiot despite his new look and personality. They will be forced to completely change their perspective of him, however, after the chunin exams are over due to multiple factors that you will see soon enough. Of course, Shikamaru, Choji, and Shino, I think are the only ones who are more accepting of the fact that Naruto's different from what they had originally thought or they never thought he was an idiot in the first place. Shikamaru is a genius so he figured it out pretty early, but was lazy and didn't act on the knowledge, Choji knew about it through Shika and trusted his judgement, and Shino is the most logical of the group and his bugs informed him of Naruto and Sasuke's changing chakra throughout academy so he would know as well. Well that's all, so until next time (^v^)


	11. Ch 11 Snake in the Forest of Death

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto

AN: I'm sorry...I got into an anime called Heroic Age. It's okay now though because I finished it. Usually I don't get distracted by manga/anime...mostly because I've read/watched everything that I would like and any possible updates don't take me very long to finish since it's usually only a chapter/episode or two and I'm good at multitasking if it's a short chapter or episode, but this was a 26 episode series so sorry about that, it took me a while to finish the series and the chapter...

* * *

Naruto grinned as the smoke cleared, revealing the T&I team, Zabuza and Haku included. Before the obvious man in charge could talk, Zabuza spotted Naruto in the back and immediately walked away from the group, the genin parting for him as they recognized who he was or were simply intimidated by the scary man with the big sword.

"Oi, Gaki-sama, you didn't tell me you were gonna be in the exams!" Naruto's grin grew wider.

"Surprise! When I heard the T&I department was going to proctor the exams I decided to keep it a secret."

"If you two are quite done catching up on the latest gossip," a rough and hard tone drawled out, bringing Zabuza and Naruto's attention to the decidedly 'tall, dark, and handsome' man heading the group, his black trench coat, bandanna, and the scars on his stern face definitely adding to the dark part. Zabuza's eye twitched at the way he put it.

"Shut up, bastard! I'll talk to the heir and unofficial head of my clan whenever I damn well please!" The man decided to pointedly ignore the demon of the Mist, turning to address the frightened and confused genin and only irritating Zabuza further. The man put on a sadistic smirk.

"Thanks for waiting. I am Morino Ibiki, the examiner for the chunin selection exam's first test." The genin all collectively gulped, nervous, team 7 and Zabuza looking on in amusement.

"He's good," Naruto murmured, an impressed smile on his face. Zabuza crossed his arms.

"Isn't he? Of course the guy doesn't intimidate me and you can sure as hell bet that pissed him off when they were assigned to interrogate me. The man hates my guts as much as he respects them." Sasuke chuckled lowly at that as Ibiki went on to reprimand the sound team for picking a fight.

"By the way, what're you doing here if Ibiki-san is the one doing all the talking?"_ 'More like threatening, but he gets the idea,'_ Naruto thought. The whiskered blond could see Zabuza's grin from beneath the bandages that covered up the lower part of his face.

"I'm just here to stand around and look pretty. I even get to play around with my sword a little if any of the little brats look at me too long." Sasuke rolled his eyes. Of course he was there for added intimidation.

"We will now start the first test in the chunin exam. Instead of your current seat arrangements...you will pick one of these tabs and sit in the seats assigned to you." He held up a small tab with the number one painted on it. "We will then hand out the exams." Kotetsu held up a stack of papers. Naruto paled.

"Why did it have to be written exams? Did the gods not curse me with enough paperwork at home? And this time I can't use kage bunshin to cheat my way out of it...dammit I'm going to get carpal tunnel before I even turn fourteen..." Naruto started to cry waterfall tears as he mumbled despairingly to himself, his team and Zabuza sweat dropping at his actions.

* * *

Hinata looked at the depressed whiskered blond sitting beside her, sympathetic towards his plight. She gave him an encouraging smile.

"Let's do our best, Naruto, ok?" Naruto whimpered a little before sitting up and sighing.

"Yeah..."

"Do not turn your tests over," Ibiki boomed, "listen to what I'm about to say." He started to write on the chalkboard as he spoke. "There are many important rules to this first test. I'll write on the board to explain, but questions will not be allowed, so listen carefully. The test is made up of 10 questions and each one is worth a point, but...this test uses a subtraction system. Basically if you answer all the questions correctly, you keep your 10 points, but say if you miss three questions...you lose three points and will have 7."

_'Information gathering & Intel? Why else would they give an open invitation to cheat. They're just telling us to do it without getting caught.' _Naruto thought idly, already bored even though the test hadn't really started yet.

"The second rule...this is a team test. Whether or you pass or not will be determined by the combined score of your teammates. So, each team will compete to see how many points they can hold on to from the initial team total of 30. And the most important rule; the third rule is that during the exam...anyone caught by the testing officers doing sneaky activities, namely cheating...will have 2 points subtracted for every offense." He stated with a sadistic smirk.

"So there will be some who will lose all their points during this exam and be asked to leave." The examiners sitting on the sides of the room all grinned and smirked at the nervous genin, Kotetsu leaning back lazily in his chair, the clipboard he held propped on his knee.

"We'll have our eyes on you guys..." Ibiki's sadistic smirk never left his face.

"Realize that the pathetic ones that get caught cheating will be destroying themselves. As ninja trying to achieve the level of chunin, be proud ninjas."

_'Might as well have given away the true purpose of the test with that statement. Ninja are in the profession of cheating and sneaking.'_ Sasuke thought, starting to get bored like Naruto.

"And the final rule...those that lost all their initial points during the test and those that don't answer the questions correctly...will be failed along with their two teammates." Ibiki finished dramatically...well maybe not dramatically but it seemed that way to the bored team 7. Maybe them not being intimidated had an effect to how they thought of Ibiki. "The exam will last one hour. Begin!"

* * *

Naruto looked at the questions on the sheet lazily. _'Question #1, decipher the cryptogram below; this code is at least high chunin level. Question #2, Line B shown in the picture below, is the greatest possible distance ninja can throw his shuriken from a tree of 7 meters. For the enemy who appear within the circumference of the shuriken's range, explain the attack options using this distance. Show your work; isn't this a question used in anbu exams? All these questions range from high chunin to anbu rank...and the last question; This question will be revealed 45 minutes after the test begins. Listen to the examiner closely before answering. Ibiki-san is up to something.'_ Naruto shrugged and proceeded to answer the questions swiftly and efficiently, turning the page over when he was done.

Naruto turned to the clock to see that only 20 minutes had passed. The whiskered blond then discreetly took a square paper seal the size of his palm from his pocket and stuck it on the back of his exam, writing down what he had suspected of Kabuto. After he had finished, he made sure that both Sasuke and Hinata had placed the same seal on their own sheets before sending chakra into it and replicating his words onto the backs of their exams.

_'Kabuto gave me a bad feeling, like the ones I got when I met Mizuki and Gatou. Something about his chakra feels off to me as well. The only ones who should have known about my A-rank mission are Team 7, the hokage, and his most trusted anbu. I've also never used my dragon summons outside my clan compounds besides the one time I summoned one on the mission in Wave and Sasuke and I never wrote it on our report or spoke of it to Hinata or Sensei...sorry Hinata.'_ The Hyuga was the next to write, adding some chakra to the seal to send the message.

_'It's alright, Naruto, everyone is entitled to their secrets. Even if I am your teammate, I don't have to know everything. I also thought Kabuto was strange since when I looked at him with my byakugan, his chakra reserves were on par with Kakashi-sensei's and he also seemed to have it very well controlled to suppress it so well. How is it possible that someone like that hasn't passed the chunin exams after taking it six times already and this his seventh one? Not possible.' _Sasuke frowned as he wrote down his own thoughts on the matter.

_'Don't forget that staged attack with Sound. He knew they were coming before they attacked long enough for him to have attacked first or at least gotten away from them long enough to not get attacked. He also made a point to mention how Otogakure was only formed a year ago and to goad them into attacking, they must be in league with each other. Perhaps he's been gathering information as a spy under the guise of a genin for four years while Otogakure was being formed so they'd have the upper hand later or something.'_

_**'Hey, kit, tell them that the guy smelled likes snakes and medicine, too. He must be a med-nin, and what other reason would he smell so much like snakes unless he has a snakes summons or hangs around someone who does. To my knowledge your wrinkly hokage told you the only person with a snake summons within the village was that woman Anko Mitarashi and you know the only other person who has a snake summons thanks to the bingo book.'** _Naruto was shocked at what Kurama said, not only because he helped the whiskered blond, but because of how serious he now knew the threat was. He hastily wrote to repeat what the fox told him.

_'Guys, we might have a problem. My furry tenant just told me that Kabuto smells like a med-nin and snakes. What other person besides Anko Mitarashi do you know has snake summons?' _When Sasuke and Hinata received the message, both their eyes widened, but it was Sasuke who responded quickly.

_'Orochimaru? As in S-class missing-nin Orochimaru? Are you telling me that Kabuto is his spy? Then that means that Orochimaru is connected to Sound somehow as well. You don't think he's here in Konoha do you?'_ Hinata's brow furrowed as she decided to add her input.

_'There's no way to tell at the moment. Kabuto has been doing this for four years and there have been no sightings of him before, then again that obviously doesn't mean he hasn't attended them personally somehow. It's whether or not Orochimaru will choose to act is what we should be worried about.'_ Naruto shook his head.

_'No, right now we just need to worry about the chunin exams. We'll leave this message visible for Ibiki-san and Zabuza to read. The two will make sure this information reaches the hokage. Unless Orochimaru shows his face to us, there's nothing much we can do as genin in the middle of an exam. Destroy the seal, but make sure to leave our messages.'_

_'Understood,'_ both Hinata and Sasuke wrote before taking off the seal and discreetly destroying it in their own manners since the seals were for one time use only unless you get out a new one. Naruto had created the seal in one of their earlier missions when they were doing some espionage and knew they would be unable to talk to one another using Naruto's bracelets and since they would be in separate locations, they could not signal each other, so Naruto created a seal that would allow them to instantly receive messages on any scroll as long as the seal was placed on it and the writer sent a small chakra into the seal to send the message. It certainly came in handy now.

* * *

"Ok, we will now start the 10th question." Ibiki called, making the genin who had been able to remain, jump and begin to sweat nervously...most of the genin anyways. "Now before we get to it...I'd like to go over the added rules for this question." Naruto groaned.

_'I'm getting sick of all these rules. I feel like this crap doesn't apply to us.'_

**_'Oh, I wonder why? Maybe because you and your underlings are all jonin level?'_**Kurama asked sarcastically. _'This test must seem like a waste of time to you guys. I bet that scarecrow sensei of yours and other jonin would be annoyed at this exam too.'_

"I'll now explain...these are the rules of desperation. First, for the 10th question...you must decide whether you will take it or not."

"Choose?!" The Suna kunoichi from before shouted. "What happens if we choose not to?!"

"If you choose not to, your points will reduce to zero...and you fail along with your two teammates!"

"What does that mean?!" A random genin shouted.

"Then of course we will decide to take the question!" Another added.

"And now...the other rule...if you choose to take it...and answer incorrectly...that person will lose the right to ever take the chunin selection exam again." Ibiki finished.

"What kind of stupid rule is that?!" Kiba yelled out. "There are guys here who have taken the exam before!" Kiba's only response to his outrage was a dark chuckled.

"You guys were unlucky. This year it's my rules, but I am giving you a way out." He smirked at their confused expressions. "Those who aren't confident can choose not to take it...and try again next year." Sasuke rolled his eyes at how tense all the genin got all of a sudden.

_'Bullshit. Ibiki doesn't have the power to ban any genin from taking the exams. These idiots also don't realize that there's more than one way to get promoted. You can have on field promotions or the kage of their respective villages could promote them if they think they're strong enough and they don't even have to promote you to chunin. You could skip chunin and go straight to being a jonin, special jonin, or even anbu...this guy is good though if he could psych so many genin enough that all they can do is panic and run around in their minds like headless chickens.'_

"Now let's begin the 10th question. Those that do not wish to take it, raise your hand. Once your number is confirmed, leave." A tense silence followed his question...soon broken by the first to snap under the pressure. More followed after the first team and more followed after that. After another team had left, Naruto couldn't help the scoff that escaped him. Ibiki turned a sharp gaze at him.

"Something funny, genin?" Naruto just shrugged.

"Nothing, just shocked at the disqualified's cowardice. Just the threat that they may be genin forever and they go running. In the real world, rank has nothing to do with who ends up dead or alive in a battle. If rank is all that matters to you, then you became a ninja for the wrong reasons." Naruto stated firmly, seriously. The genin that were left seemed to take his words to heart, their resolve hardening. Ibiki smirked as he took in the 78 remaining genin.

"Good decisions. Now, to everyone still remaining..." most of the genin gulped collectively. "I congratulate you on passing the first test!" He boomed. The genin stared at him in shock, Sakura deciding to speak up.

"Wait...what do you mean? We already passed? What about the 10th question?" Ibiki grinned at them all, making him seem much less intimidating than he was a second ago.

"There was never such a thing. Or you could say those two choices were the 10th question."

"Hey! Then what were the first 9 questions for?! They were pointless then?!" The enraged Suna kunoichi asked.

"They were not pointless...they had already served their intended purpose." Most just stared at him, confused. "To test your individual gathering information...that purpose."

_**'Blah, blah, pressure, blah, blah, cheating, blah, blah-WHOA KIT, LOOK AT THAT GUY'S GNARLY SCARS! PROPS TO THAT GUY FOR BECOMING THE HEAD OF T&I EVEN AFTER BEING TORTURED HIMSELF! KIT YOU SHOULD TOTALLY BANG HIM, THIS GUY IS ACTUALLY TOUGH!'** _Naruto didn't know whether to pale or blush furiously.

_'KURAMA, WHAT THE HELL?! I'M TWELVE YEARS OLD* FOR FUCK'S SAKE! WHY THE HELL ARE YOU TELLING ME TO BANG SOME RANDOM DUDE?!'_

**_'Hey, it's not just some random dude, this guy seems tougher than all the other pansies you surround yourself with, excluding that Zabuza guy, he's cool with me, and the Uchiha isn't so bad...for an Uchiha, but hey. If guys aren't your cup of tea then why don't you-'_ **

A flying object crashing through the window distracted the two's mental conversation. A provocatively dressed woman followed the object which turned out to be an outrageous sign. "You guys! This is no time to be celebrating! I am the examiner for the second test! Anko Mitarashi! Now, let's go!"

_**'BANG**_** HER_!_**_** TOTALLY HIT THAT SHIT! DAMN THAT WAS A NICE ENTRANCE!'** _Naruto hit his head against the desk, his teammates giving him questioning looks.

_'WHAT IS _WRONG _WITH YOU, KURAMA?! FIRST YOU TELL ME TO HAVE SEX WITH THE HEAD OF T&I, NOW YOU'RE TELLING ME TO HAVE SEX WITH THE CRAZY LADY THAT JUST JUMPED IN THROUGH THE WINDOW?! DO YOU THINK I'M BISEXUAL?!' _Kurama just shrugged in his cage.

**_'I don't know, kit. It's not like you've had a crush on anyone yet. Hell, I bet you don't even know what gender you like, not like I would understand. You humans are so strange about differentiating between gender. Honestly I don't see what the big deal is about showing affection towards the one you love, why does gender matter when it comes to your own happiness?'_ **Naruto blinked a couple times at that.

_'Wow, Kurama...that actually sounded kind of deep...hey wait, you're a guy, right? Does that mean you're bisexual?' _The kyuubi scoffed at his container, his voice gaining a holier-than-thou tone to it.

**_'I am the mighty Kyuubi no Kitsune, strongest of all the bijuu. I am a a pure being made entirely out of chakra, I do not have a gender. I am above you puny flesh-bags.'_ **Naruto mentally raised a brow at his bijuu partner.

_'Wow, inflated ego much?' _Kurama sniffed disdainfully.

_**'My ego is perfectly proportioned to my power, my self, and my actions, thank you very much.'**_Naruto only rolled his eyes, jumping when Sasuke jolted him out of his mental conversation.

"Aniue, we have to follow Mitarashi-san now." The whiskered blond shook his head to clear his thoughts, standing up.

"Ah, right, sorry." Hinata looked at him worriedly as they lagged behind the group of genin following the examiner of the second test.

"Were you talking to Kurama?" Hinata whispered. Naruto's brows furrowed as he nodded his head reluctantly. Sasuke frowned at the action.

"What did he say?" The whiskered blond paled at how angry Sasuke would get if he learned what Kurama had told him to do. He looked straight into the Uchiha's eyes, his eyes haunted with Kurama's stupid suggestions.

"Trust me, otouto...you don't want to know."

* * *

**_'Hey, kit.'_ **Naruto resisted the urge to sigh as Kurama spoke up again. _**'I know you're not going to like this, but those Kusa-nin near you have a stronger snake scent than the beetle** guy. I think one of them is the source.'**_The blond's eyes widened at that.

_'Are you kidding me right now?! That means that one of them is Orochimaru!' _He took a deep breath...a few deep breaths to calm himself. _'Alright, no need to panic. Kurama just identified that an S-rank traitor was inside Konoha that's all...I'll send a clone when we're in the forest of death to go straight to Jiji. Ibiki-san and Zabuza should have informed him of Kabuto so he should have already made some necessary arrangements. Hopefully, we won't run into him, but with my luck, I have a feeling that it's going to happen.'_

**_'You got that right, kid. You're pretty much the living embodiment of Murphy's Law.'_ **The whiskered blond went from worried to confused.

_'Murphy's Law?' _He asked curiously.

**_'Basically, it means anything that can go wrong, will go wrong.'_ **Naruto was actually a little offended at that, especially considering his wish for peace.

_'I resent that! Not all of the important missions went wrong! It's just the mission in Wave and our first c-rank wasn't bad! I just...ended up with a bunch of vassals and the wood release bloodline...nothing _bad_ per se...just strange...' _The blond weakly defended.

**'Uh-huh...face it kit, you're a walking danger magnet. It'll only get worse when your legacy is revealed to the village and the fact that you hold me is out in the open...'** Naruto resisted the urge to groan at just the thought of when that would happen. Thankfully Hinata pulled him out of his mentally exhausting conversation with the fox in order to sign some kind of agreement form that stated the examiner was not responsible for any deaths that happen during the second part of the exam.

The blond raised his brow as he made sure to read the fine print to make sure there was nothing sketchy before signing it and addressing his teammates. "Did I miss something?" Sasuke shrugged as he took the signed forms from Naruto.

"Just the entire explanation of the second exam," he replied nonchalantly as he went to turn them in to the booth. Naruto sweat dropped at that when Hinata decided to speak up.

"It's alright, Naruto. It's obvious you were having a conversation with our fourth member. The test is rather straightforward. Each team receives one scroll. 13 teams will get an earth scroll and the other 13 a heaven scroll. In order to pass, a team must have both scrolls and head to the tower located in the Forest of Death. The time limit is 5 days. We will be disqualified if we do not meet the above requirements or if we lose a teammate or they've died. There's no quitting in the middle of the exam and we must not look into the scrolls before we reach the tower." Naruto nodded and looked over to Sasuke who had come back.

"So what scroll did we get?"

"Heaven," he whispered. "We were assigned to Gate 12," Sasuke continued, this time in a louder, more normal tone. Once they had reached their gate, they could hear the examiner shout.

"The second test of the chunin exam... NOW BEGINS!"

* * *

**_'I hate snakes.'_ **Kurama informed his vessel. Naruto growled as he dodged another strike of the large summon's tail.

"You think _I _do?!" Naruto asked aloud as he leapt away from a tree in time to see it crushed when the snake wrapped its tail around it and squeezed. Naruto grinned darkly. "Well I know someone else who shares our dislike for snakes!" Naruto made some clones to serve as a distraction as he began to flash through the hand signs for summoning.

"Kuchiyose no Jutsu!" A large cloud of smoke erupted in the clearing, causing the snake to pause in its attack. When the smoke cleared, a tiger with a burnt orange coat and the usual white underbelly and black stripes around the same size as the snake appeared. The tiger was sitting on its haunches and was looking at the snake with disdain in his golden eyes.

"**I hate snakes.**" The tiger stated into the tense silence that had formed. Naruto's head dropped, his shoulders drooping at the tiger's high and mighty tone.

"Shere Khan***...could you just please get rid of it?" The large tiger gave a toothy grin, a growl ripping from his throat as he raised himself into a crouching position.

"**Gladly.**" The tiger let out a roar and pounced.

* * *

"First those Rain-nin and now the Kusa-nin. Looks like we're starting the exams with a bang." Sasuke stated dryly. _'Glad Naruto told us about Orochimaru as soon as we got in the forest. I wonder how long it'll take his kage bunshin to reach the hokage...' _

"My, what a smart boy," the man in disguise said as his too-long tongue slid out of his mouth, his hand taking out an earth scroll from his pocket. "You guys want my earth scroll, right? Since you have the heaven scroll." Sasuke's eyes widened at that.

_'Had he been able to hear us after we defeated that Rain team? I knew he was spying on us, but I didn't think he'd be able to decipher our hand signals...' _Hinata and Sasuke grimaced in disgust when the S-class missing-nin in disguise wrapped his tongue around the scroll and swallowed it whole.

"Now let's begin...the battle for each other's scrolls." The two genin tensed greatly when they were hit with his potent KI. "With our lives on the line." Both genin grit their teeth and combated the effects of the KI with their own experience with dealing with Kakashi's, Naruto's, and even Kurama's KI. Their enemy actually looked impressed at this.

"My, my, it seems you two can still move...you two are stronger than I had originally thought to stay standing after being hit with my KI." Hinata, who had turned on her byakugan, had widened her eyes in shock as she snapped her head to the ground.

"Sasuke! Beneath us!" Sasuke growled as he and Hinata jumped up to the branches in time for a large snake to pop out of the ground. Hinata was quick to get rid of it as she threw a small volley of kunai at it when it began to climb up the tree next to theirs. She gasped when Orochimaru's signature appeared within it, looking back to the place he once was to see him no longer there. They were disturbed to see him break out from inside the snakes corpse.

"You guys shouldn't relax for even a moment. Prey should always be trying to run...in the presence of a predator."

_'I know he holds the snake contract...but is it necessary for him to be so freakishly snake like?' _Sasuke thought in consternation as he slithered up the tree like the snake Hinata had just killed. His process was stopped, however, by three shuriken thrown at him.

"And what do you think you're doing attacking my teammates?" Naruto asked in a serious tone, his arms crossed and his eyes ice cold as he looked down at Orochimaru. The snake only chuckled darkly.

"Looks like you successfully defeated that giant snake...Naruto-kun."

"So you're the one who sent that snake summons...I **hate **snakes." The blond stated coldly, playing dumb for now to find out his objective and stall for time. His kage bunshin had dispelled a little while ago to inform him that anbu were on their way. The snake chuckled again as he stood, pulling up his sleeve a little to reveal a summoning tattoo.

"Then I'm afraid you won't like what I'm about to do next." He bit his thumb and before anyone could make a move, ran his bloody thumb across the tattoo. The smoke soon cleared to reveal another large snake, this time around the same size as the one Shere Khan dispelled...Naruto smirked.

"Then I suppose it's a good thing I didn't dismiss the one who actually defeated the snake you sent after me." As if on cue, Shere Khan leapt from the canopy of one of the trees to dig his jaws into the neck of the recently summoned snake. Orochimaru hissed much like the snake did as he was forced to jump off the writhing summons.

Hinata didn't even give him a chance to land before she rushed in, hitting him with her gentle fist, only for the enemy to turn into mud. Hinata's eyes widened at that. "Mud clone!" She quickly scanned her surroundings, shouting when she found him. "Sasuke, behind you!" Sasuke leapt away and threw a bunch of kunai and shuriken as he flipped midair, throwing a sharingan windmill triple blade that the shocked nin caught in his mouth when he turned in time to save his neck.

Sasuke grinned when he turned, blade still in his mouth. "Too bad-" the nin had started to say...until he noticed the ninja wire in Sasuke's mouth, currently attached to the blade in his mouth.

_'Dragon Fire no Jutsu!' _Flames quickly erupted from the Uchiha's mouth, following the path of the wire and making the flames burst in the enemy's face, however he almost seemed unfazed as he just stood their, his face smoking and sizzling.

"To be able to use the sharingan so well at this age...you truly are a man that carries the Uchiha blood." The three weren't nearly as surprised as they should be that the 'woman's' face was melting off. "Just as I thought...I want you..." The three stiffened at that as he raised his hand to his headband, a small poof of smoke beneath it revealing a small henge.

"I had fun testing your powers." He removed his hand to reveal a sound note instead of the Rain symbol. "You really are brothers. I sense a power in your eyes that surpasses Itachi." Sasuke snorted at that.

"Oh, please. How can a regular sharingan surpass the mangekyo sharingan?" Orochimaru's eyes widened at that as Naruto decided to join his teammates, Shere Khan having dispelled himself after he defeated the second snake.

"So your goal is the sharingan. Why are you after it, Orochimaru?" The snake's head whipped to the blond, shock on his face at the boy knowing who he was.

"And from the sound of it, it seems this is not your first attempt at it. Was Itachi too much of a challenge for you that you chose to go after his brother once you failed in capturing the first?" Orochimaru hissed at the contemptuous girl, ripping off the remains of his disguise.

"SILENCE, HYUGA! Don't you dare insult me with your contempt!" Naruto grinned at his response, Sasuke smirking.

"Oh? Is it a touchy subject, Orochimaru? Didn't think we'd guess at your loss to Itachi? Tell me did you try it soon after his defection from Konoha? Did you lose to a 13 year old boy?" For a moment it looked as if he would snap again, but instead he gave a viscous smirk and laughed.

"I commend you, kyuubi brat, for your attempts to rile me up, but I didn't come here to play. I came here to accomplish a goal!" He finished in a shout as he lunged towards Sasuke, his body not moving, but his neck stretching to an impossible length, his teeth bared and ready to bite his target. Naruto let out a growl as Sasuke prepared to defend, jumping to Orochimaru's neck and unceremoniously pulling it back with a harsh yank.

"**Don't you dare touch my otouto**!" Naruto growled out. Orochimaru hissed in anger and frustration at being withheld from his target, using the momentum of Naruto's rough pull to lung himself at an unprepared Naruto, digging his fangs deep into Naruto's neck. Orochimaru cackled when the blond fell to his knees clutching his neck in agony, gritting his teeth to refrain from screaming in pain.

"Aniue/Naruto!" His teammates shouted as the blond's fingers clawed at the bark beneath him and the burning mark on his neck.

"Nngh!" Naruto shook in an effort to stop from writhing and convulsing, growling helplessly when Orochimaru caressed his whiskered cheek.

"You kept me from my prize, little kyuubi brat, so I left you my present instead. You may not be as perfect a vessel as Sasuke, but you are beautiful in your own right, but do not be fooled. I will be claiming you both in time. If you both can survive my present that is." Orochimaru was interrupted from his disturbing gloating when Sasuke lunged at him with a lightning charged blade.

"Get your dirty hands off of him!" Sasuke shouted, infuriated that the man had bitten and touched his aniue in such a way. His sharingan were whirling incredibly fast, showing his absolute loathing and anger at the man.

"Why, Sasuke-kun, no need to be upset. You'll get your own soon. Until then, I advise you not to allow the exams to end prematurely." Sasuke was about to attack the man when it appeared as if he was leaving when his aniue suddenly vanished from his resting area...only to appear again in front of Orochimaru, dragging the man out of where he was sinking into the tree by his neck.

Naruto's whiskers had gotten thicker and darker, his eyes had become slitted and red and his hair more wild as red chakra began to surge, his claws digging into Orochimaru's neck, the man struggling futilely in his grasp as the red chakra began to burn and poison his skin. **"It was a mistake to place a piece of your soul and putrid chakra inside me, Orochimaru. Rest assured it is the last mistake you will ever make." **Orochimaru's eyes widened in shock and pain as he felt the kyuubi's chakra begin to burn intricate seals across his body, writhing more violently as he felt his chakra being sealed away from him, the control over his body being taken away.

He looked up at the blond with pure, undiluted loathing. "Damn you!" He hissed. "You will pay for your insolence, you wretched brat!" Orochimaru spat as Naruto's grip on his neck tightened, to the point where he could snap the man's neck with a flick of his wrist.

**"Poor choice of last words Orochimaru." **Naruto stated, his voice still kyuubi-fied and frightening. He was about to break the nin's neck when three medical scalpels embedded themselves into the blond's arm, making him growl in pain and frustration as he was forced to let the nin go.

He growled again, this time more violently, the kyuubi's chakra breaking the bark beneath him, when Orochimaru 'shed' his body, sliding wetly out of the skin's mouth and revealing a completely new and unharmed Orochimaru, though his chakra and strength seemed severely depleted, definitely thanks to Naruto's seals.

Kabuto shunshin'ed down to his master's side. "I apologize for my late arrival, Orochimaru-sama. I'm afraid I have been dodging anbu since I entered the forest. It seems they have realized my status as a spy in their ranks." He stated factually as he adjusted his glasses.

"It does not matter!" Orochimaru hissed angrily at his subordinate. "Just get us out of here already! I do not wish to face Konoha's forces just yet!"

"As you wish." Naruto growled and lunged at the two, only for them to shunshin away safely. It was deathly silent before Naruto pulled out the scalpels carelessly and let out a frustrated roar, the roar itself causing destruction to the trunk of the tree in front of him, making half of the tree topple down onto the forest floor below.

* * *

***I just want to explain a little about Kurama's...orders to Naruto. First of all, I warned my readers in the first chapter that any and all pairings could go either in a hetero or homosexual path, Kurama is simply serving as a reminder of this somewhat, telling you that it could go either ways seeing as he recommended both Ibiki and Anko as a possible bed mate. Most pairings will be heterosexual, but there may be a few that will be otherwise. I am not saying which Naruto will be as I will not make him be in a relationship with anyone until he is at least fourteen. He will have a crush on said person before fourteen, but it will never be brought up in conversation or thought until his partner starts to actively try and get together with him. Right now Naruto is focused on his career as a shinobi and accomplishing his goals, which is why he won't think about the person he likes because he feels that now isn't the time to be thinking of such things, especially when he knows he's only twelve and nothing will come of his feelings for now even if he decides to pursue them. So try not to worry about Naruto's love life for now. This of course doesn't mean that I will be holding back on other character pairings as I have already decided on many of the Konoha rookies partners, they will begin to appear shortly after the chunin exams conclude.**

****Kabuto is a Japanese rhinoceros beetle which is why Kurama calls him that in case you were wondering.**

*****Yes, it is Shere Khan from the Jungle Book, but he is good though he kept most of his proud and sarcastic attitude. He has gotten over his fear of fire though, he still, however, dislikes it and 'man' greatly save for the few that have earned his respect. Namely Naruto and anyone Naruto ****deems worthy of his respect.**


	12. Ch 12 The Preliminaries

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto

* * *

"Aniue! You have to calm down! Do you want to destroy the forest!" Naruto turned violently to the Uchiha, making him flinch back in hesitation and caution. The blond's expression softened just a bit at the Uchiha's and Hyuga's guarded expressions and he turned and sat in a meditative pose, struggling to regain control of the red chakra.

It was acting more potent and volatile than usual, gaining strength by feeding on his anger and frustration while his own chakra was distracted with repelling and destroying Orochimaru's chakra and Kurama was destroying Orochimaru's soul and the rest of the seal.

Sasuke and Hinata watched in tense silence as they could visibly see Naruto's own potent blue chakra struggle to contain and calm the red chakra, his control being meddled with by the half visible seal on his neck. They began to relax minutely the more the red chakra began to disappear and the more faded the seal became, until finally there was no seal or bite mark left and all that remained was Naruto's blue chakra, small plants beginning to grow around him as small animals began to gather, birds landing on his shoulders and legs as squirrels and chipmunks nestled themselves in his lap or hair.

It was then that the anbu...and one Anko Mitarashi decided to make an appearance, the anbu staring at Naruto in awe at his connection to nature while Anko had no such feelings. She broke the trance by picking Naruto up by his collar and snapping him out of his meditation, causing Hinata and Sasuke to immediately go on the defensive, displeased with the woman's actions while the animals that had gathered, scattered once more.

"Where the hell is Orochimaru?!" Sasuke scowled and shoved the woman off of Naruto, causing her to look at him in indignation and shock while Naruto worked on fixing his sweater and dusting himself off.

"Since you asked so nicely," she scowled at that. "Orochimaru managed to escape with the help of his subordinate Kabuto. he said he slipped away from the anbu chasing him." Naruto gave them a pointed look, making the anbu actually shuffle uncomfortably.

The anbu were both impressed and confused that the young blond could make them feel like they were being reprimanded by a superior with just a glance and he didn't even seem to be doing it on purpose.

"Apologies, Uzumaki-san," the Bear anbu stated, "his stealth skills exceeded our expectations." Naruto crossed his arms.

"I thought we informed Ibiki-san and Zabuza that Kabuto had chakra levels on par with Kakashi-sensei. Are you telling me you did not trust our information and underestimated your opponent?" An awkward silence ensued. The anbu were actually slightly shamed that they had not taken the information seriously just because it came from a genin team, even more so because it came from the jinchuuriki. Anko scowled again in the awkward silence, crossing her arms.

"What are you acting so high and mighty about, brat?! You make it sound as if you would have captured Orochimaru if his underling hadn't interfered." Naruto's eyes widened in anger at the reminder, turning red eyes at the woman and startling her.

"**I would have killed the snake if it were not for Kabuto's interference!**" The blond jinchuuriki growled angrily, his voice gaining the demonic tone again. He took some deep breaths again in order to calm himself when he saw the anbu tense at the appearance of his more malevolent chakra.

"I had used the kyuubi's chakra to burn chakra restrictive and paralysis seals on his body when I caught him by surprise. The kyuubi's chakra was slowly eating away at his flesh and I was ready to break his neck when his lapdog threw three medical scalpels in my arm, forcing me to release him." The anbu who had heard that Naruto was more skilled than he let on by the hokage, were not as shocked as they could have been at the news, but Anko was wide eyed with disbelief.

"I see. We will need you to come with us to report to Hokage-sama immediately."

"No." The anbu froze at the blunt refusal. "My team and I are going to finish this exam shortly. My kage bunshin are already on their way here to give us the earth scroll we need. We will be camping nearby for the night as a break before we proceed to the tower in the morning. I suggest you report this to Jiji and tell him to meet me there so I can report straight to him the full details of our battle."

"What do you mean finish the exams?! You were just attacked by Orochimaru! I-" She was shut up by Naruto's cold glare.

"It is precisely because Orochimaru attacked us that we are going to continue. We discovered that he is after Sasuke and his sharingan and now he has gained an interest in me because he believes I hold his curse mark and I am the jinchuuriki. He also let slip that he has other plans laid out for Konoha at the moment. If we make his presence aware to everyone, it may cause him to set his plans to action sooner than he intended and leave us little time to prepare. Let us do as he asks for now and continue the exams. It will give Konoha the time to prepare for whatever he has planned for us." No one dared say anything after that besides nods of agreement because what he said made sense.

Anko crossed her arms, scowling in irritation that the gaki was right. The head anbu bowed his head in concession. "As you wish, Uzumaki-san. Your reasons are sound. I will be sure to inform Hokage-sama." Anko gawked at the anbu, not actually having thought they would listen to the genin and simply drag him to the hokage.

Unfortunately for her, she didn't realize that they respected Naruto for being on good terms with the hokage as well as having outrun and escaped them many times when he was a child when he pulled off a prank or wished to have some privacy. That he could sense them at all as a child also served to impress them. Despite their respect for him, some had a difficult time letting go of their hatred towards the Kyuubi and that caused some to neglect their guarding duties towards him.

That Naruto held no grudge against any of them, despite amazingly remembering every anbu that ever guarded him and what they did or did not do for him when their hatred for him began to fade with time, only made their respect and guilt grow. The elite group had been attempting to amend their past mistakes by showing their respect to Naruto, hence why they referred to him as Uzumaki-san despite being a twelve year old genin, and they also gave higher value to his words because of it...or tried to. It was difficult to get past the fact that he was young and still a recently graduated genin.

"You can't be serious!" Anko shouted. "He has the information on Orochimaru we need and you're just letting him go?!" The anbu stiffened at the jonin, not appreciating being questioned by a mere special jonin(Naruto was an exception to their pride.)

"We do not appreciate you questioning our decisions _jonin._ You would do well to remember your rank." Anko spluttered around indignantly, unable to properly respond at that considering they had just conceded to a genin. "Now we will leave to report to Hokage-sama...or will we have to drag you away kicking and screaming?" The anbu finished threateningly. The jonin stayed silent for a moment before clicking her tongue in annoyance and scowling.

"FINE!" She whirled to the blond, pointing at him rudely. "But you better be at the tower early tomorrow early, you pretentious brat!" Naruto just gave her a confused and slightly offended look . The three stayed silent as the anbu and Anko shunshin'ed away, the silence stretching for a few more minutes before Naruto spoke up.

"...do you guys think I'm pretentious?" Naruto asked worriedly, quietly. The two would have made fun of him if he hadn't continued in a concerned voice. "I promised myself before we started training that I wouldn't become arrogant and self absorbed like the ninja and civilians when I grew stronger...that I would use my strength for the right reasons and I wouldn't let it get to my head, but...was she right? Am I being pretentious?" The two felt bad for thinking he was worried about his reputation, even if it was jokingly. Hinata put a comforting hand on his shoulder.

"Of course you're not pretentious, Naruto. You've never been arrogant or a show off, despite your mask making the village believe you are. You're the most selfless person I know." Naruto looked heartened by his gentle teammate's words.

"Besides, that crazy snake lady was just pissed that the anbu listened to a genin over her. She was just being pissy and rude...stupid bitch." Sasuke muttered to himself at the end, but both Naruto and Hinata's hearing caught it, the latter slapping him upside the head for his language. Naruto only chuckled at the two.

* * *

"So much for our break." Sasuke thought as most of the Konoha rookie genin...and Lee and his team made an appearance to 'help' them with the sound team. First it started with that eye sore Lee and then the rest gathered like moths to a fire. "What the hell is with all the genin gathering around our team like pests." Hinata smacked Sasuke in the back of the head while most of the Konoha genin glared at Sasuke.

"Sasuke, don't be rude, they came to help us." The Uchiha only scoffed.

"Like we asked for it. Any of us could have taken down these losers by ourselves, even if we didn't know about their sound abilities to begin with." Sasuke scowled when Hinata hit the back of his head again.

"Now, Sasuke, don't say them helping us was pointless...they did do some character building. Sakura and Ino's friendship seems to be repaired now. We figured out the sound team was considered fodder by the snake and they really need to learn the meaning of teamwork and we even learned that Neji isn't a complete asshole when it comes to his teammates." Most of the genin sweat dropped at Naruto's version of the 'bright side' of things, Neji glaring fiercely at him.

"Naruto...that still doesn't help us in any way." He frowned at Sasuke.

"It does too!" He stated childishly. "They apprehended the sound nin for us and we didn't even have to lift a finger. It really was a break from our fight from yesterday." Now it was Sasuke's turn to frown.

"The only one who needed that break was you." The frown became more concerned than annoyed. "Are you sure you're alright now?" Naruto waved his hand flippantly at the Uchiha's concern.

"Oh please. I was fine withing the first hour after the fight. We just need to head to the tower with our prisoners now." He examined the sound nin more closely. "I might talk to Jiji about letting them go under my guardianship. Maybe make one of them my vassal if they prove themselves. I like their leader, Dosu. He's got a good head on his shoulders." Naruto pinched his chin in thought. Dosu and the other two, who were at the moment tied up, but conscious glared at the blond.

"Who the hell do you think you are, brat?!" The whiskered blond shrugged, but it was Sasuke who answered.

"The only one here who can save you from being killed once we deliver you to Hokage-sama," he stated coolly, factually, looking down his nose at the three in contempt. He fondled the hilt of his sword, his eyes showing he was eager to use it. "Why don't we just end their lives now, Naruto? If the snake thought of them as useless, he obviously didn't tell them anything important. Besides, it's not like we'll get in trouble for killing them. We're still participating in the second part of the exams after all." The blond sighed when the trio gulped and the genin looked at Sasuke nervously.

"Sasuke, we've talked about needless fights. That involves needlessly killing." Sasuke frowned at that.

"But they're not Konoha nin." Now Naruto frowned, his expression serious. Sasuke paled slightly at the expression, his hand disappearing from the hilt of his blade and back to his side.

"There will be no needless killing, Sasuke, and that's final." His tone had the clearing quiet at the authority in it.

"H-hai, Naruto. Gomen." Sasuke murmured, his looking away and down, unable to meet his eyes with his aniue's. All were shocked when the Uchiha obediently deferred to Naruto. Naruto sighed, his expression softening to its usual calm, laid back manner.

"Please remember this time." Naruto turned to the genin after lifting the tied up sound-nin and throwing them over his shoulder like he would a jacket, making the sound nin shout in protest and the other genin gape in shock. "Well, let's go to the tower. We have our scrolls and we need to talk to Jiji about the rats running around Konoha."

* * *

"First off, for the second test...congratulations on passing!" It had been three days since they arrived at the tower on the second morning and team 7 had reported everything to the Hokage. Now the hokage had things handled and Sasuke was as safe as can be being at the level he's at with his teammates and teacher...no Naruto was thinking more about who they had met before meeting the hokage.

"Aniue..." Naruto's head tilted slightly in his direction to indicate he was listening. "...are you still thinking about Iruka-sensei?" The whiskered blond looked away, his fists clenching and un-clenching at his sides. "Aniue, he does care about you-"

"He just doesn't believe in me." Naruto murmured. Sasuke clasped his shoulder in comfort.

"He just hasn't seen your strength for himself, aniue. He'll believe in you soon. He cares for you and trusts you. It won't take long for him to see that you are strong enough to handle yourself and others as well." Naruto sent the Uchiha a grateful smile before the crazy snake lady started to speak.

"Hokage-sama will now explain the third test! Listen carefully!"

"Before the third test...there is something I'd like you to know, It concerns the true reason for this exam." The hokage tilted his hat slightly as he continued. "Why do we have all the hidden villages taking the exams together?-'To promote friendship among the countries.' 'To raise the level of ninja.' I don't want you to be confused about the true meaning...This exam is...," he paused to take the pipe out of his mouth, "...a replacement for war among the Hidden Villages."

_'Of course there's an ulterior motive to the chunin exams. The kages don't need a large multi-village event to find out who is worthy of becoming a chunin.' _

"It is a fact that this exam decides which ninja have what it takes to become a chunin, but on the other hand, the exam has another side...where each village's ninja risk their lives to protect their village's prestige."

"Prestige?" Ino asked.

"Watching the third exam will be leaders and influential individuals from many countries who make up the clientele of the ninja. The leaders of the country will also be there to watch each of your battles. If the strength of a Village is clear, that village will receive more clients. Conversely, if seen as weak, they will lose clients. It will signal to potential enemy countries that 'our village has this much power.' So it will send a political message to the outsiders."

"Yeah, but why?!" Kiba shouted. "Why do we have to risk our lives in battle?!"

_**'Did mutt-face seriously just ask that?' **_

_'Give him a break Kurama, Kiba's still a rookie genin...'_

**_'Kit...YOU'RE a rookie genin.'_**Naruto mentally rolled his eyes.

_'I meant he hasn't faced the reality of being a ninja quite yet. I bet he hasn't even had his first kill.' _

"The strength of a country is the strength of the village. The strength of the village is the strength of the ninja...and a ninja's true strength is born...only through life risking battle. This exam is a place to see each country's strength and to show off your own strength. It only has meaning because lives are at risk and that's why those that have come before you have fought in the chunin exam for this dream that is meaningful."

"But then why do you say stuff about it being for 'friendship'?" Ten Ten asked.

"I said it in the beginning, I don't want you to confuse the purpose of this. By losing life and establishing balance. This is the shape of friendship in the ninja world. Before we begin the third test, I will tell you one more thing. This is not just a test...this is a life risking battle with your dreams and your Village's prestige on the line."

"I don't care what it is...just hurry up and tell us what the life risking battle entails." Gaara demanded impatiently.

"Yes, I'd like to now explain the third test, but-"

"Actually... -cough-" A shinobi jumped down into the arena where the genin were, interrupting the hokage. "I apologize Hokage-sama...from here on, as the referee...will you please allow me, Hayate Gekko..." He trailed off, kneeling in front of the hokage.

"...By all means," the hokage allowed. Hayate stood and faced the genin.

"Hello everyone. I'm Hayate." He turned to reveal a sallow, gaunt face, heavy dark circles beneath his eyes. "Umm...before the third test there's... -cough cough- something I'd like you to do..."

_'So this is the sickly blade master that Sasuke told me about...I wonder if that coughing is chronic?' _Naruto thought.

"Umm...It's a preliminary for the third test to decide who gets to participate in the main event." Some genin put up objection before Sakura asked about the necessity for it. "Umm...because the first and second test may have been too easy this year...-cough- we have a bit too many people remaining...According to the chunin exam rules, we must have a preliminary and...reduce the number of participants for the third test. As Hokage-sama said earlier, there will be many guests at the third test...so the fights could take too long, we are limited in time...Umm...so anyway... those who are not feeling well...those who feel like quitting after these explanations...please come forward now. -cough cough- Since we will be starting the preliminaries immediately..."

"What?! Right now?!" Kiba yelled and he had a good reason to. He and his team had arrived sometime today and he and his team still looked battered and bruised. Naruto looked around, the sound team participating because of some pulled strings on Jiji's part, Kabuto nowhere to be seen and Orochimaru disguised as the sound team's sensei. When no one raised their hand, Hayate spoke.

"Umm...is everyone sure about this?-cough cough- Oh...umm... I forgot to tell you that from now on it will be individual battling. You may raise your hand based on your own judgement." When again, no one raised their hand, he continued.

"Umm, ok -cough- there are none retiring then. Then let's begin the preliminary. It will consist of one on one fighting. You will basically fight as if in a real life confrontation. Since we have exactly twenty entrants, we will conduct 10 matches and...umm...the winners will advance to the third test. There are basically no rules. The fight continues until one of you dies or is knocked out or admits your defeat.-cough- Umm...if you don't want to die then quickly acknowledge your defeat, but when I decide that the winner has clearly been established...-cough- umm...since we don't want pointless amounts of corpses, I'll jump in and stop things...and the object that controls your destiny is..."

"Open it." Anko stated into her communicator. A wooden panel rose high on the wall to reveal a blank screen.

"Is this...this electronic scoreboard will...-cough- show the match ups for each battle.-cough- Now this is sudden, but let's announce the two names of the first fight. After a few tense moments the first two names popped up on the screen. "Sasuke Uchiha vs Yoroi Akado. Now these two entrants come to the front." Sasuke smirked at being the first called, but paused when Naruto grabbed his shoulder.

"That nin is in league with Orochimaru." The Uchiha's eyes widened slightly. "End it quickly, reveal nothing." Sasuke nodded, a cold glint in his eyes and his smirk turning into a grim frown as he walked forward.

"Are you two ready?" Hayate asked.

"Yes." Both responded in unison. Sasuke put a hand on his blade, the thumb of his other hand lifting the blade out of the sheath slightly, preparing for the draw, his feet hip width apart with one foot slightly in front of the other. The other genin climbed up the stairs to stand with their senseis, looking down as the two stood across from each other, Hayate a few feet away and standing facing the two.

"Now...please begin." No sooner were the words out of Hayate's mouth that Sasuke had vanished from his previous spot and reappeared some feet behind his opponent, his back to Yoroi and re-sheathing his half drawn blade...as if he had just used it. Beside the Uchiha was a trail of splattered blood as if he had flicked it off his blade before returning it to its scabbard, but Yoroi had no blood on him-

A fountain of blood erupted from Yoroi's neck, the cut halfway opened into his neck. The man didn't even have a chance to utter a sound before it happened...hadn't even felt the blade cut his skin before it was over. The corpse fell to his knees before falling completely lifeless in the gathering pool of his own blood beneath him.

Everyone gaped at the very short match in shock. Sasuke tilted his head slightly in the referee's direction.

"Hayate-san," The Uchiha prompted. Hayate snapped out of his dazed shock, starting little when his name was called.

"R-right. Winner, Sasuke Uchiha." The Konoha jonin whispered to each other in shock as med nins cleaned up the corpse and Sasuke slowly made his way upstairs.

"That was-" Guy started.

"Iaido," Kakashi interrupted. "When Sasuke and I spar, if he takes off his weights like he did with this match I can barely see his blade. I use my sharingan just to see it clearly." Asuma, Kurenai, and Guy all gaped at Kakashi now.

"His speed with it is incredible! I barely saw him move and I didn't even see his sword leave the scabbard!" Kurenai whispered in awe.

"I guess he's not called a kenjutsu master of Konoha for nothing," Asuma added as he took a drag of his cigarette. The genin barely heard their senseis, staring at Sasuke in awe, shock, and/or horror. The Konoha genin couldn't believe how easily he took a life, not even seeming phased, his team didn't seem phased either for that matter.

Hinata and Naruto only offered Sasuke a minute nod, one he returned before the three stood side by side, not looking at each other, as they waited for the second match to begin.

* * *

"Zaku vs Shino. Winner Shino." Naruto stated.

"I say let Zaku rot in jail or be killed. He doesn't seem redeemable so there's no point in taking him under your guardianship. Shino is skilled with his kikaichu like the rest of his clan, but he should really train to work on his taijutsu and expand his ninjutsu library in case he encounters an enemy that gets close range or is a fire or wind elemental user that can quickly dispatch his bugs." Shino seemed o contemplate this, seeing the logic in the suggestion, the others sweat dropping at the team's blatant criticism of the matches that have passed so far, not caring if anyone heard them.

"That Misugi guy vs Kankuro?" Hinata questioned next.

"Misugi was a weak pawn of the snake. Kankuro is just another puppet user from Suna, albeit a more skilled one than usual." Kankuro growled and crossed his arms, not knowing whether to feel insulted or slightly pleased that his skills were acknowledged at all. He decided on insulted since it was three younger genin doing the commenting.

"Sakura vs. Ino?" The Uchiha snorted.

"Please, who didn't expect it to end in a tie? Sakura, I admit, has gotten stronger...barely and her medical jutsu does her no good here. Ino just barely started taking her training seriously so of course there wouldn't be much results. I'm shocked those two even became kunoichi." Kurenai glared at Sasuke while Asuma seemed abashed at the reminder. Both, however, were glad that the two girls weren't able to hear the harsh criticism, both still being unconscious.

"What about Temari vs Ten Ten?" Naruto asked the Uchiha with a sly grin. Sasuke's cheeks reddened slightly, shocking many of the people there, most of them thinking the same thing.

_'Who is he blushing over? Temari or Ten Ten?' _Sasuke looked away from Naruto.

"It was a bad match up on Ten Ten's part. She's a weapons mistress so a wind user was to her disadvantage, but it wouldn't have made a difference if Temari wasn't strong to begin with. Ten Ten was impressive with her weapon attacks, but Temari's mastery over her wind element and the use of her fan was just as impressive. In the end the one with the advantage won." He gave Naruto a stern look, trying to ignore the whiskered blond's cheeky grin. "This doesn't mean _anything_ though, got that?"

"Uh-huh, yeah, sure." Naruto agreed sarcastically, while the others wondered just who the hell they were talking about.

"What about Shikamaru vs Kin?" Hinata asked, getting them back on track.

"I also think you shouldn't take Kin under your guardianship, much less a vassal. She's too careless, conceited. Shikamaru, despite his lazy attitude, is an amazing strategist and he's much more flexible and agile than I originally thought. He will make a chunin when the hokage decides to promote him." Shikamaru clicked his tongue at annoyance at Sasuke being so confident that he was going to get promoted to chunin that the Uchiha actually claimed 'when' the hokage would promote him, not 'if.'

"Now the next match." Hayate called out.

"Ohhh, hey it's me this time." Sasuke shook his head at the second name that had appeared.

"It had to be a Konoha nin." The jonin and other genin looked at the Uchiha questioningly as Naruto and Kiba made their way down into the arena.

"Why does it matter?" Kurenai asked.

"Because Naruto will hold back...not only that, he'll end it quickly because he does not like to fight against fellow Konoha nin." Their talk was interrupted by Kiba's boisterous laughter.

"We've already won! So lucky, eh Akamaru?" The dog whined in disagreement. "C'mon bud! No matter how much stronger Naruto could have gotten, he'll still be dead last! He can't have gotten that much stronger!" Naruto crossed his arms, un phased, and instead smiled genially at Kiba.

"I see you still ignore the reason of your owner, Kiba. Maybe if you listened to your master once in a while, you wouldn't get in nearly as much trouble as you do. It must be nice to have him around to bail you out of the tough situations." Kiba growled.

"Akamaru's my partner not my owner! And I don't need him to beat a dead last like you!" He put Akamaru down. "Akamaru, you stay out of it. I'll fight alone." Kiba regained his composure and smirked cockily at the whiskered blond. "Alright, I feel kinda bad for you," he lifted a fist, "so I'll end this with one punch." Naruto rolled his eyes, uncrossing his arms and putting a fist on his hip, the other resting at his side.

"Ah, is that so. In that case I'll end it with one finger." Naruto replied dully, lifting up a hand to hold up his pointing finger. Kiba growled at the bored looking blond.

"Then..-cough- please begin!"Naruto, much like Sasuke, vanished from his previous spot, but instead reappeared arm's length away from Kiba, his arm lifted to the Inuzuka's forehead, his pointing finger ready to flick him right in the center of the Konoha symbol. Kiba barely had time to widen his eyes before Naruto flicked his protected forehead, sending him flying back and crashing into the wall, the wall itself spider-webbing with cracks from the impact. Naruto sighed as Kiba slid to the floor, unconscious, but overall unharmed save for heavy duty bruising and headaches that were sure to appear later. The whiskered blond sent a look to the referee.

"Oh, umm...-cough- right. Winner Naruto Uzumaki." Kakashi shuddered at who the whiskered blond had just reminded him of.

"...with Naruto's medical knowledge and his monstrous strength...he reminds me of a responsible, male version of Tsunade-sama..." Asuma shuddered as well at that.

"We should count ourselves lucky he's responsible then. At least he's not a drinking and gambling addict and from what I've heard, Naruto has the Devil's luck when it comes to gambling." Kakashi eye smiled.

"I wonder what will happen when he and Jiraiya-sama meet?" Asuma outright laughed at that.

"Most likely outright hilarity and pain on Jiraiya-sama's part. I'd pay to see that," Asuma commented. Kakashi kept his eye smile as Naruto walked back towards them.

"Good job, Naruto. As always."

* * *

AN:No * notes today either. Sorry for not writing out the matches, but they're all canon save for Team 7's. Hinata and Neji's fight will be next chapter, though I think it'll be more talking than fighting... Oh and I gave you a hint on who Sasuke may end up with! I even narrowed it down to two girls. My goal for most of the pairings is to surprise people. I hope the two that I named to be one of Sasuke's possible lady lovers is at least a little bit surprising. Looking forward to the feedback on this chapter...like I do with all my chapters. As always thanks for reading(=v=)


	13. Ch 13 Preliminaries Pt 2

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto

* * *

Naruto only shook his head, not pleased with his win. He would have preferred to gain his victory from an outsider nin, but maybe it was better this way. Because he held back, he didn't show any outstanding skills besides his speed and strength.

"Next match is Neji Hyuga vs Hinata Hyuga." Many eyes widened at that, team 7 unaffected. The two Hyugas made their way down into the arena after Kiba was taken by the med nins. "Now, begin the match!" The two stood still, in their gentle fist positions, staring each other down. Both their byakugans activated.

"...I never thought I'd be facing you, Hinata-sama." Hinata only smiled warmly at the cousin she once thought of as an older brother.

"Did you think that simply because you've gone out of your way to avoid me since I joined team 7?" Neji's eyes widened at that. "Were you so afraid to face the truth, Neji? To learn that you were wrong about me? That I am not a useless kunoichi, that I am not a failure?" Neji grit his teeth.

"Are you confused because I still wish for harmony, that I still avoid conflict despite my strength? Does it frighten you that being wrong about me being a failure means that you could be wrong about other things? Your notion of fate, where you have placed your blame and hatred, your own grudging concession with your situation-"

"Enough!" Neji shouted, his composure slipping away quickly. "I will prove to you that people cannot change themselves! The fact that I am from the branch house and you from the main house cannot be changed!" Hinata spoke to Neji before he could continue his little tirade.

"Your eyes floated to the upper left, Neji. Are you remembering your past experiences? Your painful past? Do you use it even now, when faced with the truth, to fuel your obsession with fate? To cling to the hatred and anger you hold towards me and our clan?" Neji could no longer take Hinata's sharp words, though she never changed her gentle tone, but that only served to infuriate him further. He charged at her.

Hinata did the same, the two meeting in the middle and engaging in a full on Gentle Fist battle. Naruto and Sasuke were surprised when Neji could actually keep up with Hinata, able to block many of her palm strikes and even getting in a few hits himself.

"Neji is jonin level?" Naruto murmured to himself.

"It's no wonder that he's last year's rookie of the year then," Sasuke commented back. The two's eyes widened when they saw Neji aim at her heart, only for Hinata to block it and hit a point in his arm. Naruto approached the railing, his hands gripping the railing so hard they were squealing in protest.

"He's aiming to kill her!" Naruto growled angrily under his breath. Sasuke glared at the male Hyuga.

"I don't know if that's his true intention, but he certainly aims to cripple her for life." Both smirked slightly when Hinata landed a solid palm on Neji's chest, obviously not a fatal blow, but enough to have him coughing up blood as they separated for the first time since the start of the battle, again staring each other down.

"Looks like she decided to step things up a bit."

"Does it frustrate you, Neji?" Said Hyuga was glaring heatedly at his opponent. "Does it frustrate you that you cannot defeat the clan heiress of the Hyuga clan when I was once called a loser, a failure, someone too weak to even be considered a Hyuga? Does it anger you that I was able to change my fate?" Neji charged again, a very un-Hyuga like growl escaping him as he did so.

"Why do you try so hard to fight your fate?!" Hinata's eyes widened at the emotion she heard in his voice, only for them to widen further at what he said next. "You are in my field of divination," he stated coldly. Hinata's eyes sharpened.

"You are in the same situation." Both their stances changed as they began to suddenly mirror each other, their voices shouting in unison.

"**Eight Trigrams 64 Palms!** **2 palms! 4 palms! 8 palms! 16 palms! 32 palms! 64 palms!**" Each attack was cancelled out by the others, their palms always meeting up in the middle before either could hit. It was silent after the two had stopped, leaping away from each other, but not moving to attack again soon.

"...for someone who puts so much stock in fate, you are certainly trying very hard to fight against it." Hinata commented quietly, gently. That did not stop Neji from becoming angry.

"What are you talking about?" Hinata relaxed her stance slightly, her expression kind.

"You are strong, Neji, stronger than many members of the main family. You have learned a technique only supposed to be known to the main house...and you attempt to harm one of the main house that you are intended to protect," she finished sadly. "I have suffered under the main branch, Neji, I was not treated as you may think...but even so...I am not the one that has suffered the most because of the main branch. It is you who has suffered the most...suffered under the destiny of the main and branch houses." Neji's brows furrowed in frustration, his stance lowering as he absorbed her words.

"I changed my fate, Neji. I became strong, despite my personality, despite still disliking violence. I did it to protect what is precious to me, to achieve my dream of changing myself and later the Hyuga clan."

"Changing...the Hyuga clan?" Neji repeated breathlessly, incredulously, his stance dropping a bit more.

"Yes...it has always been my dream to abolish the seal, to abolish the main and branch houses. We are a family, there should be no one above the other. I wish for the branch family to know freedom...the freedom to choose their own fates...Neji...will you h-help me with that d-dream?" Hinata couldn't help but stutter a bit at the end, extremely worried and nervous that Neji would refuse despite her passionate, yet quietly spoken words.

Neji's stance had, at this point completely fallen, just as Hinata's had, his fists clenching and unclenching in indecision, his eyes squeezed shut as if thinking incredibly hard. "Examiner..." Hayate looked at Neji, who had his eyes open now, staring at the ground, his byakugan deactivated. "I...I forfeit the match...," he finished softly. Hinata's eyes widened in shock and hope as she let her byakugan deactivate as well.

"Neji..." the hope was painfully obvious in her voice, but Neji still did not look at her.

"I cannot fight with a clouded mind," Neji cut in sharply, dashing Hinata's hopes, "...your words have given me much to think about...I would hope to have an audience with you after the preliminaries in order to help me clear it of my doubts...Hinata-sama." And at the non sarcastic, almost kind way he had said her name, the hope had returned, much stronger than before.

"I still think you're an bastard with a stick up your-"

"Sasuke! Shut up! They were having a moment!" Naruto shouted, interrupting Sasuke's unnecessary commentary and serving to further ruin 'the moment.' Kakashi eye smiled at the two, putting up his hands in a placating manner as if he were dealing with unruly children.

"Maah, maah, you two, quiet down and let them finish their moment," he stated, further adding to the ruining of the 'moment.' Neji scoffed, an almost smirk lifting up the corner of his lips while Hinata giggled at her team's antics. Hayate only coughed in amusement.

"Winner, Hinata Hyuga!" Naruto and Sasuke greeted Hinata warmly and both smirked at Neji as he walked up the stairs, Naruto crossing his arms while Sasuke rested his arm on the whiskered blond's shoulder, his other hand fisted against his hip in a decidedly cocky manner.

"I hope you know that Hinata could have totally kicked your ass anytime she wanted." Neji's eyes widened at that.

"Yeah, she didn't even use her original Gentle Fist style, not to mention the technique she created from the 64 palm strike." Naruto added, bragging about his teammate.

"N-N-Naruto, S-Sasuke!" Hinata managed to stutter out, her entire face turning red with the praise.

"She was just going easy on you because she really cares a lot about you." Naruto continued with a mischievous grin, ignoring Hinata's shouts of protest. Sasuke straightened and crossed his arms as he clicked his tongue.

"Why do the nice ones always go after the cold hearted bastard?" Naruto laughed aloud at his question.

"Sasuke, you do realize that that's why you have so many fangirls right?" A tick mark appeared on Sasuke's head as he turned angrily to Naruto.

"Are you calling me a heartless bastard?" The whiskered blond only raised his hands defensively, his voice full of humor.

"You're the one that said it, not me." Sasuke looked about ready to punch him, Neji watching on incredulously, his cheeks heating slightly when he finally registered Naruto's comment about Hinata's feelings towards him. Hayate coughed again to regain everyone's attention...or he could have just been coughing because he's a chronic cougher, it was hard to tell.

"And now...-cough cough- we will begin the next match." One of the fighters immediately entered the arena via sand shunshin when the names appeared, glaring at his opponent.

"Get down here." He demanded.

"UOOOOOOHHH!" Everyone looked at Choji in surprise. "SAFE!" And then everyone, sans a few sweat dropped at the chubby boy's actions. Sasuke glanced at Naruto from the corner of his eyes before returning his eyes to the arena.

"What do you think about this?" Naruto frowned, indicating to Sasuke that he did not like this at all.

"If he doesn't keep his bloodthirsty prisoner under control, I'll be sure to put him in his place with my tenant," he stated coolly, his blue eyes becoming hard and sharp. Sasuke gulped, looking at the red head in pity.

_'For his sake, I hope that he doesn't let Shukaku loose.' _Sasuke thought.

"Now 9th match, please begin!" Hayate shouted.

* * *

"**That is ENOUGH, GAARA!**" Everyone stiffened at hearing Naruto's demonic voice boom over the whole room, his potent KI setting everyone on edge despite it being directed at only one person. The blond jinchuuriki had seen enough after Gaara used his sand coffin on Lee's arm and leg. Gaara's head snapped up nervously to the utterly infuriated Naruto. He shunshin'ed to Lee's side, shocked when the genin had gotten up in a ready stance despite his ripped muscles and broken limbs. Naruto was even more amazed when he realized that Lee was unconscious. He turned to Gaara with a harsh glare.

"Why...do you save him..."

"**Because he is my comrade.**" _'We may not be friends, but we are both ninja of Konoha.'_ Gaara gripped his head as if in pain before the sand retracted back to him, reforming his armor and gourd.

"Winner, Gaara of Suna." Hayate announced quickly, moving over to check on Lee, who Gai had set down on the ground. "Medical team, please come here quickly." Naruto shook his head at Hayate as he did a quick assessment of the damage, working on repairing what he could at the moment.

"The iryo-nin will be useless here. Any damage they can repair I am already fixing, but the damage to his arm and leg will require hours of intensive surgery that I am not able to provide at the moment and no other iryo-nin is as skilled as I. They will tell you that Lee may not be able to continue being a shinobi." Naruto wiped his brow after sitting back after healing what he could, the iryo-nin deciding to check his work after having come in the middle of his explanation. The med-nin's eyes widened at the extent of the damage.

"You say you can heal this damage?! Even Tsunade-sama would have extreme difficulty healing this, if she even could!" The iryo-nin sent Naruto disapproving looks for 'getting their hopes up' and so on as they carried Lee away, but Gai was looking at the whiskered blond hopefully.

"Can you really heal him, Naruto?" Before he could answer, Kakashi did for him.

"Naruto's been practicing medical ninjutsu for about two to three years now. He trains his chakra control constantly to keep it perfect since his chakra reserves grow constantly and since he has such a large and potent amount of chakra, his med-ninjutsu is capable of doing things that other iryo-nin could only dream of. Naruto could probably regenerate limbs if he had the chance to." Gai's eyes lit up at his rivals words.

"Yosh! Naruto! How soon can you attend to my young protege!" Naruto backed away a little at Gai's enthusiasm, but replied.

"I can attend to him as soon as we can leave and Lee has been transferred to the hospital, but I will have to tell you about the risks that come with the surgery as well as have to deal with the hospital since they will no doubt protest to a genin without a medical licence using such an advanced and dangerous medical procedure on one of their patients."

"We can get permission from Hokage-sama later. For now why don't we head up to watch the last match."

* * *

"Well, with this, the preliminary trials for the round 3 test...has been completed!" Hayate announced after the end of Choji and Dosu's battle.

"I think you're right about Dosu...he would make a good vassal. Good head on his shoulders like you said and it seems he's realized that the snake sees him as nothing more than fodder...Choji should really train some more though, it looks like Dosu didn't even try." Naruto nodded and smiled at Sasuke agreeing with him as the remaining competitors walked down into the arena.

"I'll talk to Jiji about it when I ask for permission to do surgery on Lee."

"To all of you who won the rights to complete in the 'third round test' in the chunin exams...congratulations to you all!" Hayate turned to the hokage. "Ah, well then, Hokage-sama if you would please..."

"Yes," the hokage smiled as he tilted his hat a little, "well, now I'd like to...start explaining the main test." He took a puff of his pipe, blowing the smoke out leisurely. "As I told you before, in the main event, your matches will be seen by everybody. Each of you will fight to represent the strengths of your countries. I'd like you to show off all your powers with no reserves. Which is why the finals...will be held one month from now."

"We're not going to do it now?" Temari asked.

"This break, you can say, will be for preparations." The hokage answered.

"What does that mean?" Hinata questioned this time. The hokage smiled.

"In other words...in addition to informing all the various country lords and ninja leaders, this is the time needed to arrange for the gathering of the event...and this is also the preparation for you examination students." Kankuro scowled.

"I don't understand what you're trying to say! What does that mean?" He said, parroting Hinata's previous question, causing Sasuke to roll his eyes.

"Stupid," Sasuke muttered loud enough for him to hear. The hokage continued before Kankuro could retort angrily.

"Basically, it's preparation to get to know your enemy and yourself. It's the time period where you will calculate you chances of winning by analyzing the data you accumulated during the trial competition. The battles up to now had you fight as if you were in an actual combat situation with the assumption of fighting an unknown opponent. However, the final trial will not be like this. There are those who showed all that they can do already to their rivals...there are those who competed and were badly injured against a strong opponent. To make everything fair, the one month should be used by all of you to advance and improve yourselves. Of course it'll be fine to rest your body as well...and that's the way it is...well, I'd like to dismiss you now, but...there's something that has to be done for the finals before I can do that."

"Hokage-sama sure is long-winded, isn't he," Sasuke whispered to Naruto who only snickered at the comment. The hokage cleared his throat, having heard the comment.

"There are pieces of paper inside of the box Anko's holding so each of you take a piece."

"I'll come around, so wait your turn!" Anko shouted. Dosu pulled up his sleeve and reached in when she approached him first. "Only one now." Anko scowled when Naruto was next turning away insultingly when he had his paper. Naruto unfolded the small sheet to reveal the number 1. After everyone had gotten a piece of paper, the hokage spoke.

"Alright, you took a piece. Now then, I'd like you to tell us the number on the paper in order, starting from the left." Ibiki lifted his pen and clipboard, ready to write down quickly. Dosu went first.

"It's 8..." Naruto next.

"I've got 1."

"4," Sasuke said with a smirk.

"5." Temari stated plainly, followed by Kankuro.

"2." Gaara continued.

"3."

"6," Shikamaru drawled.

"9." Hinata said quietly.

"7." Shino finished.

"Alright, now I will...reveal to you the final tournament!"

"Huh?!" Kankuro exclaimed.

"That's what we drew the numbers for?!" Shikamaru shouted worriedly.

"Now, Ibiki, show them the match arrangements."

"Hai." Ibiki turned the clipboard around so they could see it, revealing a neat chart of who would be fighting whom.

Naruto Uzumaki vs Kankuro

Gaara vs Sasuke Uchiha

Temari vs Shikamaru Nara

Shino vs (Dosu Kinuta vs Hinata Hyuga)

"Well then, you're free to start strategizing or resting as you like. With this, I'll dismiss you all, but are there any final questions?" Shikamaru raised his hand.

"Can I ask a question?"

"Yes?" The hokage inquired.

_**'Man, I thought the chunin exams would be exciting.'**_Kurama commented in disappointment.

_'What, being attacked by Orochimaru and threatening Shukaku not enough for you?' _Naruto thought incredulously. The fox scoffed.

_**'Not hardly. When I get to beat down on those two myself or watch you go wood style crazy on the two, THEN it may just be enough for me.'**_Naruto only mentally rolled his eyes at the fox, the hokage snapping him back to attention after whatever question Shikamaru just asked...probably nothing too important.

"Well then, thanks for all the effort you exerted for these trials! You're all dismissed until a month from now!" The genin mingled for a bit. Dosu having a quiet talk with Naruto about his future in Konoha while Hinata and Neji had a little chat about their 'fight.'

"I would be honored to help you train for the month, Hinata-sama." Neji said respectfully after having set a more appropriate place for their more personal talk. Hinata smiled warmly at him.

"I'm glad to hear that, but before we have our audience or begin training..." She walked up to him and put both her hands on his shoulders, leaning in close to him and making the male Hyuga flush slightly, confused.

"H-Hinata-sama?" Neji internally cursed himself for stuttering. She only continued to smile warmly at him...before kneeing him straight in the family jewels. To Neji's credit, he did nothing more than let out a grunt of pain before Hinata allowed him to fall to his knees, one hand between his legs, the other clawing at the wall beside him as he shook and looked at the ground in pain.

"I just wanted to get some small revenge for how horribly you've treated me over the years, Neji." Hinata stated with a rather cool voice as she kneeled down in front of him. Neji flinched and closed his eyes to brace himself for more pain when Hinata raised her hand to him. He opened his eyes in shock when she only cupped his cheek and gave a chaste kiss to the other.

Neji flushed cherry red, pain temporarily forgotten as he stared at Hinata in absolute shock. "H-H-Hinata-sama!" Hinata only giggled at his expression getting up and walking away after saying one more thing.

"I'm glad you're on my side now Neji." The genin, who had been watching quietly had flinched when Hinata kneed the poor Hyuga, the guys putting a protective hand over their own packages, closing their legs.

"I don't know whether to feel sorry for the guy or consider him lucky for getting kissed by the Hyuga babe," Kankuro commented idly. He was rewarded by two glares from her male teammates.

"If I were you, puppet boy. I would keep your comments about our teammate to yourself." Naruto started

"Or we'll do more than hit your family jewels." Sasuke finished threateningly. Kankuro gulped and paled, nodding his head vigorously as his hands once more moved as if to protect his precious.

* * *

"It was certainly nice of Hokage-sama to give you that medical licence and mission, Naruto!" Gai shouted enthusiastically as he dragged the whiskered blond across the village to the hospital at frightening speeds. Naruto groaned, a hand clamped over his mouth, completely unused to being dragged around at such ridiculous speeds.

"Yeah-urp- great..." Naruto knew he was going to need a few minutes to himself when he got to the hospital.

* * *

Naruto clicked his tongue as he examined Lee's back, making Gai flinch in the silence. Naruto sighed in frustration as he sat back on the chair, scratching his head as he did so.

"This is going to be trickier than I thought."

"What do you mean, Naruto!" Naruto rubbed his aching ears after Gai's shout.

"Quiet down, we're in a hospital." After the man complied, Naruto continued. "There are numerous bone fragments lodged within vital parts of his neutral framework. Lee is mostly healed now, but he's in no condition to operate as a shinobi." Lee began to shake while Gai stood suddenly.

"But you said you could operate!" The whiskered blond nodded.

"I did and I can. The only one besides me that could probably perform the surgery is Tsunade, but not only will it require a large amount of time...it is also incredibly risky."

"Risky?" Gai asked. Naruto rubbed the back of his neck, starting to feel the burden.

"At best, the highest rate of success for such an operation would only be 50%, with my potent, naturally healing chakra, that percentage rises up to 61%, but...if it fails Lee will die..." A tense air filled the room. "And even if the operation succeeds, he will have to endure extensive rehabilitation." The air became more tense...until Gai decided to speak.

"Take the surgery, Lee." Lee looked up at his sensei in shock.

"Gai-sensei!" Gai only grinned at him.

"For the one who never stopped working hard, the surgery will most definitely succeed! It will call forth a heavenly future! If by one in a million chance the surgery fails, then I shall die with you!" He gave Lee a thumbs up. "Ever since I met you, my nindo* became to raise you into a great ninja. That's a **promise!**" Lee's eyes began to water at his sensei's heartfelt words, suddenly rushing to hug him.

"Gai-sensei!" Gai smiled at his student, patting the top of his head. Naruto shifted in his seat awkwardly, feeling as if he were intruding.

_'This is really weird...I hope I can start the surgery soon...' _Naruto thought as he looked out the window, noting that it seemed to be around 4 in the afternoon.

* * *

Gai paced worriedly in front of the emergency room doors, the light above still red...just like it had been for the last six hours. Sasuke as well had stayed with the man, concerned since this was Naruto's first large surgery...excluding any major healing he'd done on missions with prisoners and slaves. He was more worried the med-nin assistants would do something as horrible as intentionally mess up the surgery to spite him. Both jumped when they saw the red light die out, indicating that the surgery was over. The whiskered jinchuuriki sighed tiredly as he took off the face mask and wiping the sweat off his brow. He looked at the two occupants with a wide grin.

"The surgery was a success." Gai reacted immediately shouting and crying and practically jumping off the walls in joy. Sasuke only sighed in relief. "Lee should be up and running around in no time once he's gone through the rehabilitation. No doubt that he'll throw himself into it with vigor." Naruto grunted when Gai grabbed him in a bone crushing hug, saying thank you over and over again. The whiskered blond just patted the man's back awkwardly, not used to a grown man, much less a jonin, crying on his shoulder.

* * *

Narutogroaned as he rolled his shoulders, patting them with his fists.

"Want to go to the hot springs before we head home? The hot water's sure to do you some good since you can't focus your medical ninjutsu enough to fix it yourself right now. I have to say, six hours of straight up iryo-jutsu is impressive. You must have a huge headache from the concentration it must have taken." The blond shook his head as they changed course to the hot springs, the temptation too good to pass up.

"More like a little dizzy and light headed as soon as I let my concentration go, but that went away after a few minutes. It's my muscles being tense and near still the whole time that has my whole body aching. I've never stood still for so long with my whole body tensed up...I do not recommend it." Sasuke was about to comment when both stopped at the sight they saw at the wall that fenced off the women's bath. There was an old man in kabuki type clothing with a long spiky white ponytail grinning and drooling as he stared into what Naruto and Sasuke could only assume to be a peephole in the fence.

"Aniue..." the blond sighed, knowing what was coming.

"Yes, otouto?" Sasuke pointed at the distracted man.

"Is that your godfather peeking at women in the hot spring?" Naruto buried his head in one of his hands.

"...unfortunately, otouto, yes...yes it is." Naruto sighed again as he looked at the man again. "Why don't you go on ahead Sasuke...and don't wait up. My godfather and I have some catching up to do." Sasuke nodded and only waved goodbye at him.

"Good luck with that." He stated before walking in. Naruto walked up to the man when Sasuke left, crossing his arms.

"What are you think you're doing?" Naruto asked in an annoyed tone. The man didn't even look up.

"SH! Quiet gaki, I'm doing my research." Naruto raised a brow.

"Research? That's the lamest excuse I've ever heard, Jiraiya." The now named Jiraiya looked up to see why this person knew his name when he paled significantly...as if he'd just seen a ghost. He fell on his backside in shock, the peephole forgotten.

"M-M-M-Minato?!" Jiraiya squeaked out, pointing accusingly at him. Naruto flushed slightly and rubbed the back of his head, making Jiraiya pale further at the familiar action and embarrassed grin that followed.

"You really think I look like him, Ero-sennin?" Jiraiya snapped out of it at the nickname, a tick mark appearing on his head.

"Oi!" Naruto smiled at him.

"It's nice to finally meet my godfather." And again, Jiraiya paled, his anger forgotten.

"N-Naruto..." The blond only shook his head, smile never leaving his face.

"Don't worry about it Ero-sennin. I'm not mad at you, but I do want to have a little talk with you."

* * *

Hayate didn't even have a chance to gasp as a hand slapped over his mouth and pulled him _into _the wall. That was certainly strange for Hayate. His eyes widened when the sand-nin appeared only to look around confused and frustrated.

"Dammit, where did he go? His chakra signature just disappeared. Orochimaru-sama will not be pleased to hear this."

"You're right." Hayate flinched at the second voice, making the one who held him, squeeze his arm in warning. "He's not," Kabuto said as he adjusted his glasses, "but don't worry, you're not the one that has to deliver the news. I will. It seems we have underestimated the ninja of Konoha." The two stayed a moment longer before both shunshin'ed away. Hayate relaxed when he could no longer sense them and really did gasp when he felt himself _ phase_ out of the wood. He gasped and coughed as he turned to see the one who grabbed him, his eyes widening when he did.

"Naruto?" The blond grinned and shook his head.

"Nope! I'm just a wood clone! I was out patrolling for the boss like he said when I found Kabuto and that Suna-nin. Looks like you were in the wrong place at the wrong time. Lucky I was here to save you, huh?" He said cheerily. Hayate only looked confused and concerned.

"Umm...while I'm thankful that you saved my life -cough- and would like to know how exactly you have the wood release, -cough cough- I really think we should tell Hokage-sama about Kabuto being a traitor and Suna being in league with Orochimaru.-cough-" Naruto waved his hand carelessly.

"Don't worry about that. Jiji already knows about Kabuto and Orochimaru being here, but the Suna thing is a new development though now it makes sense as to why their jinchuuriki is here." Hayate's eyes again widened at that before he got over it, realizing that there was obviously more at play if the Hokage was already aware of some things and Uzumaki was involved.

"I see. -cough- I would still feel better -cough cough- if I reported to Hokage-sama though." The clone only grinned wider, his eyes squinting as he gave the man his foxy grin.

"No problem! I'll escort you there in case you get attacked again. I can take down the enemy no problem!" He boasted childishly as they went on their way to the hokage tower. Hayate shook his head at the genin's enthusiasm, but couldn't help but feel safer as they sped off to inform the hokage about the latest development.

* * *

***Gai's nindo is the 'path of hard work'**


	14. Ch 14 The Invasion Begins

Disclaimer:I do not own Naruto

* * *

Naruto sighed as he lay atop the hokage monument, watching the sky as he lay on his father's head.

"Hey," Naruto looked to the side. "You're that Naruto kid, right?" His eyes widened a little when he saw Ibiki with a box in his hands. He jumped to his feet, brushing himself up as he greeted the sadistic man with a smile.

"Ibiki-san, hello. What are you doing here?" He lifted the box a little and motioned to one of the buildings with his head.

"Just taking some files to the archives. A better question would be what you're doing here. Shouldn't you be preparing or training for the final round tomorrow?" Naruto shrugged as he and Ibiki started to walk to the archives.

"Kakashi-sensei's been training Sasuke since the beginning of the month and Hinata's training with Neji and her sister Hanabi. I was training with Ero-sennin for a while, but he got seriously hurt so he's been in the hospital for a while. He should get out sometime today though." Ibiki's lips twitched at the nickname.

"Ero-sennin?" Naruto grinned.

"Yeah, you know, Jiraiya of the sennin, writer of those perverted Icha Icha books? He calls himself a super pervert, so i thought my nickname suited him perfectly." The man laughed boisterously at the explanation.

"Of course. I would expect the same kid who calls the hokage Jiji to address one of the sennin like that." Naruto's grin widened.

"If you think that's funny, you should know I call Orochimaru Pedo-hebi. The man laughed harder as Naruto opened the door for him.

"Thanks for the laughs kid. Maybe I'll see you around sometime." Naruto continued to grin, waiting until he was out of sight before he let the grin fall. He sighed and started to walk back to the hospital.

_'Stupid Ero-sennin. First he almost gets killed when I tried to go past four tails before I'm ready then he nearly gets ripped to shreds when I try out that rasenshuriken that I had developed with Kakashi. I told him that I couldn't do either yet even with the Shodaime's blood helping me with Kurama's chakra...'_

**_'Damn right, kit! That white haired idiot has no one to blame but himself for being in intensive care! Besides he's not the only one that got hurt! It took even you and I a few days to get rid of the burns my chakra caused your body and that rasenshuriken nearly decimated your right arm! I damn near had to regenerate the whole thing and that wasn't exactly a walk in the park!'_**Naruto winced at the painful reminder, remembering the absolute agony he was in for hours on both occasions as he healed and he couldn't pass out from the pain because the same healing chakra kept him conscious and feeling every second.

_'It didn't exactly help that that kage bunshin I sent to check up on Lee in the hospital ran in to Gaara.' _Kurama scoffed.

_**'That kid's a sack of crazy thanks to his daddy dearest and Shukaku. I probably would have done that to you if you had given in to your darkness when you were younger,'**_he stated, completely casual. Naruto sweat dropped.

_'How can you say that with no shame?' _He shrugged.

_**'Why should I be ashamed? I'd rather have a crazy psycho killer vessel than a weak crybaby, besides it turned out fine in the end. We're all buddy buddy now so don't get your panties in a twist.'**_Naruto frowned at the way he put it.

_'I'm don't even wear panties and it's not like I was mad. It was just an innocent question jeez, no need to be a sarcastic asshole about it.' _

"Uzumaki-sama!" Naruto looked around the street he was walking, ignoring the general populace as his eyes spotted two sets of twins and a mummy.

"Gozu, Meizu, Sora, Rio, Dosu. What're you guys doing here?" Naruto greeted them. Gozu was the one to answer.

"Zabuza-aniki told us to show around your newest Senju vassal since it took us a while to get used to being Zabuza-aniki's vassals." Meizu scoffed.

"Not really, aniki was already ordering us around before, it's not like becoming his vassals really made a difference." Naruto turned to the younger twins expectantly and they lit up at being acknowledged by their hero.

"Rio and I were doin' some grocery shopping for a special dinner with Kaa-san tonight." Naruto tilted his head inquisitively.

"Special dinner?" It was surprisingly Dosu who answered.

"Everyone's going to celebrate you making it to the final exam tonight...it's also an unofficial early celebration for you becoming a chunin since they believe in you so much." Naruto flushed a little at that.

"Really? But no one's told me about it."

"They don't exactly need you to celebrate their master's success. They're having the party in your name, but the only one you're going to go to is the one at the Uzumaki clan and even then you're only going to be having dinner with Zabuza, Haku, and Sasuke. Your vassals are going to be celebrating at their own dinner." Naruto scratched the back of his head in embarrassment.

"Oh, well, thanks. No ones really celebrated anything because of my accomplishments before so it means a lot to me." He smiled warmly at the group actually making all flush at being thanked so sincerely, especially the younger twins with their hero worship. They lit up like Christmas lights at being thanked by their savior.

* * *

_'Oh man...today's the day. I wonder when he's going to attack? Oh right, we decided he'd probably do it during Gaara's match since he's probably the trump card/ distraction.' _Naruto looked up at the stands until he spotted a fully healed Ero-sennin standing next to the sitting hokage, Orochimaru sitting next to him and disguised as the kazekage. The real one was most likely dead. Naruto frowned when he looked around and couldn't spot Sasuke. Kakashi wasn't in the stands either.

"Hey stop looking around," the referee said, "face the customers. In this main tournament, you guys are the stars." The whiskered blond examined the referee in the black bandanna.

_'So this is Haku's lover...I was surprised when I heard he got one so soon, but with how effeminate he is I guess it's not surprising. He said that this Genma guy had a habit of chewing senbon, looks like it was true...of course they met at the weapon store to restock on senbon...' _Naruto's attention turned to the hokage when he stood. _'Oh boy, here we go...man and Sasuke isn't even here to see it. He was looking forward to this way more than I was.' _

"Thank you everyone for coming to the Konoha Chunin Selection Exams!" He waited for the cheering to die down. "Before we begin, I wish to reveal a secret that has been kept from Konoha since twelve years ago. I did not reveal it sooner because I did not think the person involved was capable of defending himself well enough until a few months ago." Murmuring broke out, but the hokage ignored it. "Everyone knew who our beloved yondaime hokage was...but not everyone knew he was married." General shouts of shock sounded through the arena.

"That's right, and even fewer knew that his wife was giving birth the same night that the kyuubi attacked." The hokage ignored the reactions, finding them distracting. "On that unfortunate night the yondaime's son was born, safe and healthy...and his name was Naruto!" The old man smirked at their gobsmacked faces enjoying the looks of realization and horror that flashed on some.

"Naruto's mother and Minato Namikaze's wife was none other than Kushina Uzumaki, better known as the 'Red Death' and her grandmother happened to be Mito Uzumaki, the wife of our Shodaime, Hashirama Senju. That makes the Shodaime Naruto's great grandfather and the Nidaime his great granduncle and Tsunade Senju a distant relative and her godson. He is also Jiraiya of the sennin's godson and _my_ surrogate grandson. Naruto Senju Uzumaki Namikaze is the heir of the Uzumaki clan, the leading clan of the fallen Village Uzugakure, making him prince of the fallen village. Naruto is also heir to the Senju clan since his godmother has not completed a mission or been in Konoha for more than ten years. When Naruto becomes a chunin he will be taking up the mantle of clan head for both his clans, already having taken the responsibility of maintaining his clan properties since he graduated as a genin." Most of the civilians simply looked like they were in shock, unable to process that the boy they called demon child was basically the legacy left behind by their previous hokages..._all_ of them and was related to their current hokage and the two remaining loyal sennin. Many paled at this.

They had beaten the great grandson of the Shodaime, the great grandnephew of the Nidaime, the surrogate grandson of the Sandaime, the son of the Yondaime, and the godson of the sennin Jiraiya and Tsunade...they were relieved and amazed that they were still alive! This of course, made a surprising amount of people question whether or not Naruto was really a demon that had brought them their misfortune and unhappiness...but the hokage did not give them time to ponder as he returned them to the original purpose as to why they were there.

"Now that I've made Naruto's identity clear, we will now start the main tournament matches between the 9 participants who made it through the preliminaries! Please stay and watch until the end!" Genma recaptured the genin's attention.

"Alright guys, this is the final test. The arena is different, but the rules are the same as in the prelims; you fight until one of you dies or acknowledges defeat, but if I determine that the fight is over I'll step in and stop it, you got that?...Now the first fight, Naruto...Senju Uzumaki Namikaze..." He turned to grin at Naruto.

"Name's a mouthful, huh, kid?" Naruto grinned back before Genma got serious again. "Versus Kankuro of Suna-"

"I forfeit!" Kankuro shouted with his hand raised. Much of the crowd protested, but Naruto was the one most outraged.

"What?!" The puppet user resisted the urge to run when Naruto stalked towards him, immediately raising the Suna-nin up by his collar. "4 years..." Naruto muttered. "I've waited 4 years to become a chunin! 4 years I trained to protect those precious to me and to become strong enough to claim my legacy! All that was left was for me to become a chunin. I managed to finally get to the last test...and YOU FORFEIT?!"Kankuro had thought that the level of fear he was feeling was only reserved for when he was around Gaara...he was obviously mistaken.

_'Crap, I don't want to fight because I don't want to give away my moves and to reserve my strength for the invasion...and I don't want to fight him! He'll beat me silly!' _Kankuro cried internally a he swallowed audibly, answering shakily. "Umm...y-yes?" The whiskered blond let out an audible growl, his eyes flashing red for a moment before he tossed Kankuro harshly to the ground, stomping off to the stairs leading up to the stands. Genma snapped out of the little stupor the scene had just caused.

"Er...winner by forfeit...Naruto Senju Uzumaki Namikaze." Naruto only leaned against the railing sullenly, very unhappy with his 'win,' sending Kankuro a dirty look, a gleam in his eye that made everyone around him uncomfortable. For those who knew that look, they felt pity towards the puppet user because it was the look Naruto gained when he was thinking of pulling unspeakably horrible pranks on someone. Many were thinking the same thing.

_'He should have just taken the beating...' _Genma had said a little while ago that Sasuke and Gaara were supposed to step forth after the other genin had gone to the stands as well, but Sasuke wasn't showing up and the crowd was starting to get unruly, already disgruntled at missing the Yondaime's son's match.

"What the heck is that guy doing? Is he planning not to come?" Naruto shrugged.

"No he probably is, but he's been training with Kakashi-sensei for the last month." Shino adjusted his sunglasses.

"What does your sensei have to do with it?" Naruto scoffed.

"Everything. Kakashi-sensei is known for being late to everything short of an important meeting with the hokage. People even joke that he'd be late to his own funeral. He's three hours late for all our team meetings and he's only ever on time for C-rank missions and above. I bet it's Kakashi's fault that Sasuke's late."

"But shouldn't your sensei know that Sasuke's going to get disqualified if he doesn't arrive on time?" Naruto eyed the conversation happening between the hokage and false kazekage and then the ninja they sent down to Genma.

"Sensei's probably banking on just how many important figures came just to watch Sasuke's match." True to Naruto's words, Genma made an announcement as soon as the ninja left.

"Ladies and gentlemen! The contestant for the next match hasn't arrived yet! Therefore we will push the match back and begin the next one!" Shikamaru's eyes widened in shock and realization.

"Hey, this means that my match is next!" As if on cue, Genma announced it.

"And now the next match! Temari and Shikamaru Nara! Come down!" Temari immediately took out her fan, using it to glide down into the arena.

"Looks like you're eager." Genma commented before turning to the stands. "Shikamaru, get down here!" Shikamaru, meanwhile, was freaking out.

_'What's she getting all excited about? I wish she'd just die! How come I'm the only one that has his matches changed around so much? Well, I guess I can also forfeit and-' _Unfortunately, because Shikamaru was too busy freaking out at the moment, he didn't notice the hand that slowly inched closer to his back, one that unceremoniously shoved him over the railing, making him land in the arena on his back.

"Alright! Shikamaru, go for it!" Shikamaru lay there with a disgruntled look, sighing when the crowd began to get unruly and shout at him.

_'...everyone wants to see Sasuke's fight... They're probably angry because after all this waiting they have to watch this pathetic excuse for a match between two side acts. Since nobody cares about this fight, there's really no point in doing it...' _

"What, are you giving up too?" Temari asked with a smirk, making Shikamaru frown as he tilted his head up to see her upside down.

"Shikamaru! Good luck, I'll make it up to you by buying you ramen!" Naruto shouted at him, making everyone sweat drop while Temari decided to charge Shikamaru before the match even started. Naruto smirked when Shikamaru dodged the fan blow.

_'This will be interesting...' _Naruto thought to himself.

* * *

The whiskered blond burst out laughing when Shikamaru gave up. He had expected it, but that didn't mean it still wasn't funny.

"The next match is Hinata Hyuga versus Dosu-"

"I forfeit!" Dosu shouted readily. Genma gave an exasperated sigh.

"What the hell is up with this year's chunin exams?" Naruto only smacked his head.

"Why the hell are you forfeiting, Dosu?" He gave the whiskered blond a look that said he clearly questioned his sanity. His words helped solidify the look.

"Are you crazy? There's no way I'm fighting any teammate of yours Naruto-sama." The whiskered blond only raised a brow, crossing his arms.

"So you're only forfeiting because she's my teammate?"

"Hell no! If the people on your team are as strong as you, I wouldn't stand a chance anyways! I'd rather save myself the pain." Naruto actually chuckled at this.

"I knew you had a good head on your shoulders, though the crowd doesn't seem to like you."

"Alright then, winner by forfeit, Hinata Hyuga...which means that the next match will be Shino Aburame vs Hinata Hyuga!" Both made their way down the steps, facing each other. Naruto actually felt bad for Shino...well not so much Shino as his hive if Hinata was going to end this quickly and use the technique that Naruto thought she was going to use.

"And Begin!" Almost as soon as the words were out of his mouth, Hinata and Shino went into action, however they did not move from their spots.

"Protective 8 Trigrams 64 Palms!" Immediately, Hinata began to emit a constant stream of chakra from her palms, the streams forming into extremely thin, sharp blades. The blades themselves already seemed to be doing their job as they began to fly towards their intended targets, Shino's kikaichu, hitting them individually with incredible accuracy.

No matter which direction Shino sent his bugs in, they found no way to penetrate the chakra net surrounding Hinata and they found themselves destroyed by the chakra blades Hinata projected at them. His brow began to furrow the more minutes that passed since the start of the match. After a while Shino recalled his bugs and raised his hand.

"Proctor, I forfeit." He adjusted his glasses when the crowd booed in protest. "My bugs cannot penetrate Hinata's defense and I do not wish to deplete my colony any further than it has been. I knew that I would not have been able to defeat Hinata-san if she knew her clan's barrier technique, but I did not realize that she had created a technique that could attack as well as defend." Genma nodded in approval and raised his hand to Hinata.

"Winner, Hinata Hyuga!" Naruto gave his congratulations to Hinata then pat Shino on the back in reassurance.

"Don't worry too much about the loss, Shino. It was a bad match-up." Shino nodded in agreement.

"Yes, it made me realize that I should take under advisement the criticism Sasuke gave in my match in the preliminaries. I had considered it then, but perhaps I should think on it more seriously." Naruto returned his gaze to Genma, who looked about ready to disqualify Sasuke...when he and Kakashi suddenly showed up in a shunshin. Naruto smirked when he saw Sasuke's new clothes.

_'Looks like Otouto got my little gift.' _The Uchiha no longer wore the casual, heavily Uchiha themed clothes as before. Sasuke wore a yukata top that ended mid-thigh, grey samurai plated armor sewed onto the sleeves on his shoulders, upper arms, and hem with red rope. The yukata was dark blue in color with white lining and an ice blue lightning design, a thick red rope matching the armor rope wrapped around his waist and keeping the yukata tied, the front opened to reveal a skin tight sleeveless black anbu shirt underneath. Grey armor plating was also on the sides of his black anbu pants tucked into shin armor leading to black ninja sandals*.

His kusanagi was, as always, laying on his hip, ready and waiting to be used. Kakashi eye smiled at Genma. "Sorry we're late." Genma smirked.

"Name?" He asked, almost rhetorically, as if he didn't already know. Sasuke smirked.

"Sasuke Uchiha." Kakashi continued to eye smile, but his hand went back to scratch the back of his head

"Well...we showed up all flashy and the like, but...could Sasuke have been...disqualified?" He asked a little nervously. He turned to the Uchiha. "See...you're late Sasuke." Genma only shook his head.

"Geez...your tardiness must be contagious." He gave them a stare that made the two nervous.

"So...what is it?" Kakashi asked. Genma smirked.

"Don't worry...we pushed Sasuke's fight 'til the end. He hasn't been disqualified." Kakashi laughed in relief.

"That's good! Good!" Naruto called out Sasuke's name over the people's, making Sasuke look up at him.

"Be careful." Naruto mouthed the words to him, his brows furrowed in concern. He had a reason to be. Gaara was a seriously unstable jinchuuriki. Shukaku was able to too heavily influence him and since he had a similar past to Naruto but without the benefit of having had precious people to keep him sane.

Gaara is how Naruto could have ended up, especially if he had never had the hokage to support him or befriended Sasuke and the Uchiha understood that very well. He knew how dangerous Naruto could be if he allowed Kurama even a little bit of control so he didn't have to imagine very hard to know just how dangerous an unstable jinchuuriki could be. He nodded at Naruto, entirely understanding his concern. Genma recaptured everyone's attention when Gaara finally made his way down.

"Now, finally." Hinata and Shino joined them, both looking sickened.

"What happened?" Hinata was the one who answered.

"Gaara...he...he just killed two grass nin...the hall was painted with blood. I didn't think one could kill so messily." Shino adjusted his glasses.

"Perhaps we should count ourselves lucky that we were not the ones to fall prey to his bloodlust." Hinata nodded her head in agreement. She knew she was strong, but she did not have the speed necessary to break through Gaara's ultimate defense like Lee did and her own ultimate defense took a lot of chakra and was not fed by a bijuu.

"Begin!" Naruto's eyes snapped back to the match, just in time to see Sasuke jump back when Gaara's sand began to trickle out of his gourd. Naruto stiffened when Gaara held his head in pain.

"Don't...get so angry...Mother." The sand began to swirl and hover around and over him. "I fed you some nasty blood earlier...I'm sorry...but this time...it will be delicious." Sasuke tensed when Gaara finally looked up at him. Naruto, meanwhile, was struggling with his own bijuu.

_**'HAHAHAHAHAHAHA! OH KAMI, DID THAT KID JUST CALL SHUKAKU **_**MOTHER_?! HAHAHAHA!'_ **Naruto was gripping his own head in pain at having Kurama laughing so loudly. He didn't even have the concentration to tell Kurama to shut up as he was too focused on the match. Sasuke had thrown two shuriken, probably just to test the waters. Of course they were blocked by a wall of sand, that wasn't the surprising part. The surprising part came when the sand transformed into a semi-disturbing clone, sand shooting out of its stomach and to Sasuke.

Sasuke leapt up to avoid it, only to throw four shuriken in order to intercept four sand projectiles. He moved to kick the clone, using his hands to push up from where he landed and delivering a back punch to the clone's neck. Naruto clicked his tongue.

"Baka, fighting a sand clone." Naruto looked at the Uchiha in disapproval when his wrist was caught by the sand, only for Sasuke to deliver a powerful palm thrust to its face, making it dissipate with the rest of the clone. He charged in to punch him straight in the face and the wall of sand came up, but Sasuke only smirked, Naruto doing the same as Sasuke blurred out from in front of Gaara to appear right behind him and catching Gaara by surprise.

He managed to land a hay maker to Gaara's face, making the Suna-nin's armor crack as he was pushed back onto the ground. Sasuke smirked as he got back into a ready position. "So I _can_ crack your armor if I move fast enough and hit hard enough." He moved behind Gaara again faster than he could see, moving past the sand walls faster than they could form and landing a kick to Gaara's already cracked face, making some of it break apart as his sand cushioned the blow of him being kicked against the wall.

He ran a circle around Gaara as soon as he stood, ducking under the sand that tried to follow his movement and landing an upper kick to the red head's chin, but before the force could lift him upwards, Sasuke grabbed his shirt and dragged him down to knee him in the gut. He backed up quite a bit when the sand created sand spikes to drive him away.

The Uchiha's brow furrowed when Gaara made a hand sign and the sand began to form around him like a cocoon. He made two shadow clones to attack it together, but they were quickly dispelled when sand spikes pierced them through as soon as they landed a punch. Sasuke barely winced at the memory, taking into account how it felt like his clones had hit concrete.

_'...Kakashi's training was kind of pointless. It was just him training only me rather than our team. He already taught me the jutsu I needed before we even knew about the chunin exams...' _Sasuke sped through familiar hand signals, immediately working to gather the chakra in his palm quickly and precisely since it seemed that Gaara was up to something inside the barrier.

The sound of thousands of birds chirping began to fill the air as Sasuke began to charge the cocoon himself. Naruto and many of the jonin were not shocked when the chidori pierced through the barrier as if it were nothing more than butter. There was an eerie silence before a scream emitted from inside the barrier.

"UWAAAAA! BLOOD! MY BLOOD!" Sasuke's eyes widened as he struggled to pull out his arm, adding more chakra to the chidori in order to get loose. He didn't let out a sound as he pulled out his bleeding arm, watching the sand claw arm that had tried to pull him back warily.

_'Aniue is definitely going to scold me later for being so careless...' _Sasuke cursed when the cocoon began to crack and turn back to sand to reveal a bleeding Gaara, but Sasuke did not see Gaara at first, he saw a different set of eyes, ones that definitely did not belong to the red head. His head snapped up when he noticed a genjutsu being cast over the stadium. He immediately dispelled the feathers he was seeing with his sharingan and quickly turned to Naruto to see if they should start the plan, but Naruto was looking to the kage booth in concern.

Sasuke's eyes quickly darted there as well, just in time to see a smokescreen cover it. Naruto cursed as he jumped into the arena, Sasuke dashing out of the arena, the two's eyes meeting for a brief moment as Naruto took Sasuke's place and Sasuke made his way over to the kage booth.

_'The invasion has finally started!' _Naruto growled when three large snakes were summoned in the village and Jiraiya only was able to summon two large frogs in order to combat them since his chakra and attention would be more focused on helping the hokage. The whiskered blond bit his thumb and summoned Mizuchi.

"Mizuchi, I need you to help out the toads with those snakes!" The large blue dragon nodded once before flying off with no further prompting, understanding quickly that this was no time to ask questions. Naruto quickly summoned three more creatures, this time tigers. The largest of the three had a pure white coat with only the black stripes along its spine decorating the coat with thunder-like patterns, the other two were similar in size and nearly similar in color in that both had the same burnt orange coat with white underbelly, but one had thinner stripes and the other thicker with black tipped ears, the former being Shere Khan while the latter was Rajah**.

The first a Bengal tiger and the other an Indian tiger. The white tiger looked expectantly at his summoner with golden eyes. "Byakko-sama, I need you, Shere Khan, and Rajah to attack anyone attacking Konoha citizens or Konoha itself. I want there to be as little damage as possible." Byakko nodded in understanding, darting away with the other two following shortly, quickly attacking any Suna-nin in range. Meanwhile Sasuke had followed Jiraiya and the hokage and fake kazekage to the roof, the anbu not arriving quick enough before a purple barrier was erected.

Temari and Kankuro leapt to their brother's side while Genma made his way in front of Naruto, as if to protect him...Naruto resisted the urge to roll his eyes since the man was doing it because he believed Naruto was a genin, despite his family tree, and he was a good person.

"Gaara, the plan..." the Suna jonin started only to stop when he looked at Gaara.

"I knew it..." Temari stated worriedly.

"What's wrong?" The Suna jonin was the one who answered Kankuro's question.

"Fool! Trying to transform into your complete form before the signal!" Temari kneeled down besides the shaking red head.

"He's experiencing the side effects! It's impossible to proceed now!"

"Then what are we supposed to do?!" Kankuro shouted at his sister. "Do it without Gaara?!" They stood there tensely for a moment, a moment Naruto was about to use to attack when the Suna jonn spoke again.

"Abort the mission. You guys take Gaara and retreat."

"What about you?!" Temari shouted while Kankuro cursed and supported his brother.

"I'll join in the battle. Go!" The Suna genin did so leaping over the wall. Naruto ran to follow them, looking over his shoulder to address Genma.

"Take care of that guy, will you?" Naruto took off the ear piece from his bracelet and put it on before he made multiple shadow clones, only two staying with him while the others went to help where they could. "Sasuke, what's happening in barrier?" Naruto was more than a little relieved when Sasuke responded quickly.

"Orochimaru just revealed himself. Only Jiraiya and I managed to make it into the barrier, the anbu were held up by Suna, sound-nin, and some traitors." Naruto cursed. "...now he's making a completely stereotypical villain speech about his goals...aniue why do they do that?" Naruto sweat dropped as he pursued the Suna-nin, wanting to wait until they were far enough away from the village before confronting them.

"I don't know, otouto, maybe it's something that happens when one chooses the darker road. I know for a fact Kurama does it." Sasuke just grunted and Naruto decided to check up on his other teammate. "Hinata, what's going on on your end?"

"I'm helping your clones take the unconscious civilians to the safe houses by making sure no one attacks them. Oh and Kakashi sent Shikamaru, Shino, and Haku as back up." The whiskered blond looked puzzled.

"Haku? He was nearby?"

"Yes, they're using Pakkun to track you. They'll find you as long as he follows the strongest scent."

"Kakashi sensei how are you doing?" Naruto could almost 'hear' the eye smile he must be wearing right now.

"Oh fine. Just taking out some Suna and Sound nin with Gai. I'm sure he'll turn this into a competition soon." The whiskered blond would have chuckled at that if Sasuke hadn't spoken again.

"Aniue, Jiraiya-san just told me to take out one of the people holding up the barrier in order to let the anbu in while he helps out Hokage-sama. I'll be busy for a while so I won't be able to give you play by plays." Naruto nodded.

"Do whatever needs to be done, but remember to be careful. You were quite careless in your fight with Gaara."

"Gomen, aniue, I got too excited," he said in a shamed tone.

"Just come out in one piece, otouto, that's all I'm worried about. That goes for you too, Hinata, Kakashi-sensei." Naruto was sure the three of them were smiling when they answered.

"Hai."

* * *

***This is Sasuke's outfit in the Naruto Shippuden video game Dragon Blade with a different color scheme. I haven't played the game myself, but I liked the outfit. Sorry I'm a bit superficial when it comes to clothing, but only when it involves myself or fictional characters, mostly my own.**

****Yes, this is Rajah from Disney as well, from Aladdin. Byakko is one of the four symbols of the Chinese constellations, it's called Byakko in Japanese, but in Chinese it's Baihu, sometimes it's called white tiger of the west. **

I'm sorry that I didn't update yesterday or the day before, I saw some of you were disappointed, sorry again. I was kind of dealing with personal issues I'd rather not talk about, but I was trying to complete this chapter, though it took me longer because of the aforementioned personal issues and I felt pretty shitty when I was writing, but I did it and I'm kind of getting back into the swing of things. Hopefully my mood didn't affect my writing, but I feel like it did so I'm sorry for that, especially the fight scenes, I'm not good at making them very exciting...I'm just going to stop writing because I'm starting to depress and annoy myself... I'll try and get over it while I'm writing the next chapter, writing makes me feel better once I get into it...so until then (=_=)


	15. Ch 15 Test of Strengths

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.

* * *

"Dammit! I wish I was there!" Sasuke sweat dropped on the other side of the line.

"Aniue, you're the only one that can deal with Shukaku, would you really let it run rampant just to fight the undead Shodaime and Nidaime?" Sasuke sighed when Naruto didn't answer. "You really need to work out your priorities."

"I would have summoned Fenghuang to fight him, or Ryujin* like I'm planning to do, or even Byakko in his larger form!" The whiskered blond defended. Haku giggled while Shikamaru shook his head.

"Only you Naruto." Naruto didn't spare the Nara a glance, already having felt his back up coming. Pakkun was leading in the front when he turned to address us.

"Hey! You guys, pick up the pace." Haku's brows furrowed in concern.

"What is it?" He asked.

"From behind, a squad of 8, no...one more, 9 men are chasing us."

"Hey, hey, already? You've gotta be kidding!" Shikamaru exclaimed.

"Don't look as if they've got a fix on our true position yet, but they're closin' in on us quickly while on the look against any surprise attacks..." Shikamaru clicked his tongue and cursed under his breath.

"And they're probably all chunin level or above too." Shikamaru frowned a bit before looking at Sasuke. "Hey you have some kage bunshin and summons I could borrow?" Naruto frowned in thought. He already had hundreds of kage bunshin running around helping people evacuate and fighting sound, suna, and konoha nin(traitors). He also summoned the boss of the tigers, Byakko, and the two strongest beneath him as well as his dragon familiar Mizuchi. He still needed to be able to summon the dragon boss Ryujin in case Shukaku got free.

He thought for a moment more before nodding a bit. "I can give you the two clones that have been running with us and three wolf summons. All three should be mid to high chunin level. I would at least summon you my familiar, but he's the second strongest of the contract and is seriously...um destructive and war loving, he'd go a little too crazy for just a group of nine and he might even kill you too." Naruto said sheepishly as if apologizing for that. Shikamaru sweat dropped.

"Er, that's fine. It's pretty clear that you're way above genin and probably even chunin level from what I've been able to figure so two of your clones plus three summons to help me out should be enough. I can work out a good ambush with two jonin level kage bunshin, three chunin level wolf summons and me. I'll handle the oncoming group and catch up to you guys as soon as I can." Naruto nodded and stopped for a bit to summon the three wolves.

_'...this is going to be the first time I've summoned wolves since summoning the boss and her mate, my familiar, but they told me about the others so I should be able to summon them.' _Naruto slammed his hand onto the ground, making a cloud of smoke erupt and quickly dissipate to reveal three pony sized wolves. The largest one in the center had the coloring of a black and white husky and had murky amber eyes, the one to his left had a dark grey mane, darker grey around his face and a lighter grey underbelly, the one to the right was an earth brown wolf with a tan fur underbelly and black ears.

"Shikamaru, these three are Akela, Akira, and Koga.** They'll be the ones helping you with the squad of nine." He pointed to the grey, black & white, and brown wolf respectively. Koga, the brown wolf looked excited.

"Great! Are we finally getting the chance to fight?!" The grey wolf was much more calm.

"Calm down, Koga. Don't be so eager to run into battle, you'll only end up getting yourself and others hurt." Koga growled at the grey wolf.

"Shut it Akela! It's been decades since the last person signed the wolf contract! I want some action!"

"And you'll get some! Naruto obviously summoned us to help his lazy looking friend so that's what we're going to do, so shut up and start listening!" The middle one barked out.

"Right, sorry, Akira." Koga stated, his ears drawn back a little.

_'Oh great,' _Shikamaru thought, _'there's actually a wolf form of Kiba...at least Akela and Akira seem to be calm and experienced...' _He sighed. "Naruto's going to be going ahead to engage the main enemy. We're going to be staying behind with two of his kage bunshin to ambush a squad of nine people." He turned to Naruto, Haku, and Shino. "You guys go on ahead, we'll catch up with you guys as soon as we can." Naruto and the others nodded and left the group behind, hearing Shikamaru's voice fade away the farther they got as he told the wolves and clones his plan.

* * *

Naruto pressed the receiver closer to his ear, a frown on his face. "Sasuke, what's that noise? Is it your battle or someone else's?" More noise traveled through.

"Oh that? That's just...Hokage-sama and Jiraiya-san fighting the Shodaime and Nidaime. Right now I'm working on fighting this lard-ass with a curse seal. Turns out I need to distract all four in order to take down the barrier. Only distracting one just makes the barrier weaker, but the anbu still can't get through...Uh...oh I gotta go." Naruto's frown deepened.

_'Well, that's reassuring...' _Naruto thought sullenly.

"Looks like we've caught up to them...and one of them doesn't smell human." Naruto's eyes sharpened.

"It must be Gaara. Shukaku must be close to coming out if his smell has changed." Kankuro clicked his tongue in annoyance when he spotted us.

"You guys go, I'll stall them." Shino stepped up.

"Unfortunately, you will only stall one of us. Your opponent will be me, Naruto may have been who your were matched against, but he will be fighting a more worthy opponent for his skill level." Kankuro growled at the jab to his strength. Naruto only nodded at the Aburame, grateful.

"Thanks Shino, hope to see you soon. Tell Shikamaru to hurry up if you see him." Shino nodded and Pakkun, Haku, and Naruto were off again after Temari and Gaara. The three arrived just in time to see Gaara shove aside his sister. Naruto's brows furrowed.

_'Could he...possibly be protecting her? If Shukaku were more in charge he would have killed her for sure...so maybe Gaara knew that and pushed her away before he lost control?' _Naruto tensed when Gaara's face began to crack on its own.

"You, that is strong...you, that have companions...you, whose chakra makes Mother feel weak...you, that is like me...Once I kill you...I will be the one to have destroyed all of that...only then I can survive...only then can I feel alive!" He fell to his knees in pain, crying out in agony as the sand began to overtake his body, forming Shukaku's arm and part of his face.

"Damn...this is not going to be pretty..."

**_'Really, kit? What gave you that idea?' _**Kurama asked sarcastically.

"N-Naruto! The face of Hokage-sama on the monument just cracked! Sasuke, what's happening?!" Hinata's frantic voice asked over the receiver. Naruto's eyes widened at that.

"Sasuke! Is Jiji alright?! What's happening?!" Naruto's stance tensed the longer the silence went on and he almost fell in relief when Sasuke answered.

"Don't worry, Hokage-sama's alive, but he just lost part of his arm and leg to Orochimaru's kusanagi after he and Jiraiya managed to get rid of the Shodaime and Nidaime. I managed to break the barrier by having a bunch of shadow clones hassle the ones keeping the barrier, the anbu came in a while ago to help me and the hokage out." Naruto sighed in relief, but was still saddened seeing as the hokage wouldn't be having anymore intense ninja fights and he was probably going to have to choose a new hokage after this mess was over.

"Hinata, how about you?"

"I'm fine. I was helping Iruka-sensei evacuate the academy students to the safe houses. One of your tiger summons, Rajah, is helping out too. What about you, Naruto?" The whiskered blond in question had just dodged an attack from the miniature half-Shukaku, his hit taking out a chunk of the tree trunk he was on...along with many trees behind it.

"Uhh...let me get back to you on that..." Naruto quickly started to form a rasengan in his hand, his eyes locked with Gaara/Shukaku's. Naruto charged when he did, his rasengan outstretched to meet Shukaku's arm and just like the whiskered blond had expected, the Rasengan cut through his arm as easily as if he was cutting a piece of paper. Shukaku screamed in what seemed to be pain, until it evolved into evil cackling.

"...I see...! ...so that's what it was!...the reason why I'm so excited...I JUST GOT THE ANSWER!" The red headed jinchuuriki began to tremble, clutching his torn sand arm. "It's the pain..." He looked up with a maniacal grin. "Defeating a man strong enough to hurt me and utterly destroying him...that's what gives me an even greater sense of existence!" He laughed some more, his arm reforming and a single tail forming behind him as well. " More! I WANT MORE!" Naruto watched the transformation with a pained look, his words affecting Naruto far more than they should.

He dodged the next charge, his eyes widening only slightly at the other jinchuuriki's enhanced speed. Naruto gathered his chakra as Gaara charged again. _'Water release: Tearing Torrent!' _Water began to spiral in Naruto's hand, moving to the half transformed jinchuuriki at high velocity once it was as large as his dragon familiar Mizuchi. Naruto frowned when the attack barely phased him, only slowing him down enough for Naruto to dodge again.

_'The rasengan is a pure chakra technique based off of the bijuudama so of course it would work against him...normal elemental techniques seem to be useless against him...and I can't use my chakra or wood release to sooth and contain him unless he's fully transformed into Shukaku...man this officially sucks.' _Naruto growled as Gaara charged head on again.

"You seriously need to learn some new tactics!" He shouted as he formed another rasengan, once again ripping through Shukaku's arm, this time cutting all the way through. The sand limb fell off as he screamed, the screaming continuing as this time an arm formed on the other side. Naruto spared a glance at Haku, who was attending to Temari and keeping her from interfering, not that it seemed to be necessary as the girl seemed absolutely terrified of what she was seeing.

Naruto turned back to Gaara with a prominent frown, feeling something much too close to kinship with the Suna-nin. _'He's just trying to prove he exists...that he matters...if I had given in to my hatred, if I had let Kurama control me through my negative emotions...I'd be no different than him...' _Gaara grabbed his head in pain when he looked into Naruto's eyes, trembling.

**_'What the hell are you waiting for kit?! Now's your chance to kill him! You can subdue Shukaku for however long you need to once he's released and seal him again!'_**Naruto bit his lip, the copper taste of blood soon touching his tongue.

_'I...I can't.' _

**_'WHAT THE HELL DO YOU MEAN YOU CAN'T?!' _**

_'Kurama, he's like me...but he never found a reason to live...a real one, he never found anyone precious to him...and if he did he lost them or they betrayed him. I can't...I can't kill him knowing that I could help him, knowing that I could save him from that pain. I don't want anyone to go through that, not even my worst enemies.'_

**_'Then put him out of his misery! End him! How many lives do you think he's taken?! He's irredeemable, now suck it up and KILL HIM!' _**

_'SHUT UP, KURAMA!' _The fox was stunned into silence since Naruto had never yelled at him like that. _'What the hell do you think I am?! I'm a shinobi, _HE'S _a shinobi! It's our job to take lives! So what if he's killed innocent people?! Most of them probably deserved it and the ones that didn't were victims of Shukaku, Gaara's a victim too! And don't fucking tell me he's irredeemable! I know for a fucking fact that you've killed innocent people, but that also wasn't your fault! I know there's good in you, Kurama...I wouldn't have made you my friend otherwise...That's why I want to save Gaara...I don't want him to be consumed by hatred like you used to be, like I almost was, I want to save him...' _Naruto thought desperately, sincerely. Kurama was silent for a moment, before he spoke up softly.

_**'...you won't be able to save everyone, kit,'**_Naruto was about to speak again but Kurama cut him off, _**'but if you're really set on saving this gaki, then I'll help you...'**_Naruto wasn't able to cherish Kurama's support for very long before Gaara regained his attention by attacking Haku. Naruto, eyes wide, intercepted the attack, using his earth affinity and liberal use of chakra to harden the skin on his upraised arms in order to lessen the damage of the attack. His feet dug into the bark of the thick branch beneath him as Haku used the delay to move him and Temari away from his attack range.

"What is he to you?" Gaara asked. Naruto grunted in exertion as he struggled to push back against the arm.

"He is my comrade and I will fight anyone in order to keep my comrade's safe." Naruto said, his eyes hardening with resolve and determination as he locked eyes with the suna-nin.

"Comrades...?! You make me laugh...I FIGHT ONLY FOR MY SAKE!" The sand began to overtake Gaara's body, making him appear more and more like a smaller Shukaku. Mini-Shukaku crossed his arms and swiftly thrust them apart, sand shuriken projecting from them.

_'Earth release: Earth style wall!' _An earth wall erupted from his hands which stemmed from where his hands slammed onto the branch, letting it fall when the projectiles were stopped. Naruto stared into his lonely eyes, those eyes he used to see everyday in the mirror.

"Gaara...why are you strong? Why do you fight?" He asked quietly. Haku's eyes widened at the questions, remembering a similar conversation between him and the blond when they first met.

"I fight for only myself! I love only myself! That is the definition of the strongest!" Naruto shook his head sadly.

"I fight for my comrades, for my village. I love those that are precious to me. It is in caring for them and protecting them that I draw my strength, I grow stronger for them _and_ for myself. Let us see, Gaara, who wins in this battle of strength!" Naruto created multiple kage bunshin and charged. Gaara retaliated with wind release: great sandblast breakthrough. Naruto dodged by using substitution, his kage bunshin all dispersing.

Naruto unsealed his monk's spade just in time to deflect more sand shuriken, charging with his spade at the ready, enhancing the weapon with his chakra as the two began to exchange blows, Gaara throwing volleys of sand shuriken and trying to impale him with his arms, Naruto slashing at him with wind chakra on his crescent blade, using kicks and the pole to deflect any thrusts made by Gaara.

The two pulled apart, neither panting, both breathing deeply. Naruto's brow furrowed in frustration. _'I'm not used to being so serious for so long...time to lighten things up a little!' _Naruto grinned, catching Gaara off guard with the happy expression. Naruto made a bunch of kage bunshin and had them charge. While most kept Gaara busy, Naruto himself snuck behind Gaara as he rolled an explosive tag on a kunai.

"Konoha Ancient Taijutsu Supreme Technique! 1000 YEARS OF PAIN!" Naruto shouted dramatically as he impaled the kunai in Shukaku's sandy behind. All was silent for a moment, no scream of pain, no movement, not even breathing...until Shukaku swatted him away with his tail, of course Naruto had substituted to escape the attack grinning as he squat on a nearby branch. "BOOM!" Naruto shouted as the explosion seal went off.

_**'HAHAHAHAHAHA! Good one kit.'**_Naruto's grin widened at Kurama's laughter, appreciating his approval.

His grin slowly faded as he noticed that Shukaku was half sand again, though Gaara was still not visible. "...you know...at first I admired that you survived...because you were like me...because you lived feeling the same kind of loneliness and sadness as I did...I thought you were strong for having survived that solitude...but you were fighting for only yourself...that is not real strength. Strength doesn't come from fighting alone. Strength doesn't come from fighting only for yourself! When you have someone precious to you, something to protect...only then can you become truly strong!" Naruto built up a large amount of chakra, continuing to build up and build up until he finally released it, smoke covering the entire area and quickly dissipating to reveal hundreds of kage bunshin.

"I guess I'll just have to overwhelm you if I can't knock you out one on one!" The original whiskered blond sat down to meditate, drawing on the nature chakra around him to replenish his chakra reserves while his clones fought Shukaku. Naruto's brows furrowed in frustration when Shukaku grew to his original size, his sand starting to wrap around him, his clones all destroyed by the sudden transformation.

_'Come on, come on...just a little more...chakra... THERE!' _Naruto grit his teeth as the sand began to compact around him. His eyes snapped open and he bit his thumb, rapidly going through the hand signs and slamming the only ground beneath him, smoke erupting around him and making the sand blow apart. "KUCHIYOSE NO JUTSU!"

Naruto steadied himself as he stood on a ridiculously large multi-colored-scales dragon, bone white white antlers protruding from his skull, a golden mane along the dragon's canine jaw and chin, ivory spikes protruding down the entirety of its spine, his snake like body half coiled, matching ivory claws and fangs gleaming in the dying sun.

**"I see you have summoned me for a fight this time, Naruto, and with the ichibi no less." **Naruto bowed his head slightly.

"Yes, Ryujin-sama. It seems I am in need of your assistance." The large dragon grinned toothily.

**"Very well, Naruto! Let us answer the call of battle together! Hold on tight, young one!" **Naruto braced himself, sticking to the dragon with his chakra as the dragon flew forward, roaring at Shukaku before biting into his arm, tearing it off as he moved past the other behemoth, his flight path destroying the forestry beneath him. Ryujin laughed mightily as he spit out the sandy appendage.

**"These bijuu are much stronger than I anticipated! It was almost difficult to tear off the creature's arm. It has been so long since I have been able to put forth effort in my fights! I already enjoy having you for a summoner! The Uzumaki had some large battles, but they never confronted a bijuu like this." **Naruto sweat dropped as he didn't know whether that was a compliment or a jab at his sanity and intelligence.

"Er...thank you Ryujin-sama. I realize that this is your first true battle in very long, but I'm afraid the land can only take so much damage...some of my comrades are also in the direction you launched from so I am worried for them as well."

**"Do not worry, Naruto Uzumaki. Your concern for your comrades is one of the reasons I accepted you as a summoner." **Ryujin was interrupted from speaking more when Gaara spoke, laughing.

"You're fun! This is fun! Naruto Uzumaki!" Said blond's eyes widened when Gaara's upper body phased out of Shukaku's forehead.

**"Such a young boy is the medium? And with such a weak seal. The lengths some creatures will go to for power is the same as always I see." **Naruto's shoulders drooped at that.

"I apologize, Ryujin-sama." The large dragon chuckled.

**"You are much too kind hearted and young to be apologizing for the entirety of your race, Naruto." **

"Thank you for keeping me entertained so far...Now I'll show you the true powers of the sand demon." Ryujin's large golden eyes widened a bit.

**"The boy means to release the ichibi by putting himself to sleep! I had thought with his signs of insomnia that he would avoid such a thing, especially because giving himself to the ichibi like that allows the ichibi to eat away at his personality until there is nothing left. The boy may have been unstable, but him being awake has kept the real ichibi's power suppressed." **

"False sleep Jutsu!" Gaara called out before slumping forward, obviously unconscious now.

**"HAHAHAHAHA! I'M FINALLY OUT! YAHOOO~! AND HERE'S SOMEONE I WANT TO KILL RIGHT OFF~~! WIND RELEASE-"**

**"Hold on tight, Naruto!"**

_**"RENKUUDAN**!"**_Shukaku slammed a hand on his stomach and spit a high powered concentration of wind at the dragon and jinchuuriki, Ryujin leaping to the air to dodge and opening his maw to retaliate.

**"Celestial Comet Shower!" **Five enormous blue-white balls of fire rained down towards Shukaku who quickly retaliated with five of his own Renkuudan. Ryujin slithered harshly to the side, making Naruto nearly fall off his already precarious perch when the dragon had to evade a sixth renkuudan after their attacks imploded in the air.

_**"DAMMIT DON'T DODGE!"**_Ryujin only laughed heartily.

**"While this battle has entertained me, perhaps it is best to end it before we rearrange the landscape too drastically." **Naruto smiled down gratefully at the dragon.

"Yeah, but to do that I'd need to wake up Gaara, the medium." Ryujin chuckled.

**"Consider it done!" **He exclaimed before charging at the sand beast, fangs and claws at the ready. Shukaku shouted in anger when Ryujin slammed into him full force, claws digging into his limbs and the dragon's teeth in his throat, his body wrapped around the behemoth, keeping him from moving. **"Now Naruto!" **The whiskered blond wasted no time leaping from Ryujin to Shukaku's head, his arm outstretched for an attack.

"WAKE UP CALL!" Naruto shouted as he landed a nice hard punch to the side of Gaara's defenseless face. Shukaku's eyes widened as he felt his control slipping.

_**"SHIT! I ONLY JUST CAME OUT!"**_The whiskered blond groaned in frustration when all it did was give control back to Gaara, the giant bijuu body still in tact. He growled and charged at Gaara, only for his foot to sink into the sand beneath him, nearly making him trip. He was saved from being impaled by sand when Ryujin blocked him with the end of his tail.

"Don't touch me!" Gaara shouted angrily.

_'This is not good...' _Naruto thought as the sand beneath him began to travel up to wrap around him.

"You're going to be killed by me. My existence will continue." Naruto's eyes narrowed at the reminder of why he fought. He concentrated on building his chakra before releasing it at once and blowing off the sand that was clinging to him. Gaara's eyes widened as he formed another hand sign.

"DIE!" Sand wrapped around him to attack the blond who dodged it and ran straight towards Gaara, jerking his headband down to hang at his neck and aiming to punch him again before the sand restrained him. Naruto was not deterred and simply surged forward to headbutt the red-headed nin hard enough to make them both bleed. The sand restraining the blond fell, Shukaku's body falling apart as well.

_**'I don't think that's what they mean by 'using your head', kit.'**_Kurama commented idly as the larger scale fight came to a close.

**"Thank you for the wonderful battle, Naruto, but I'm afraid I must go...the wife is going to have dinner soon and I do not wish to incur her wrath."** He didn't give Naruto a chance to say thank you or even goodbye before he poofed back to his own realm.

The two landed on the tops of two equally tall trees. They were still, their eyes locked for barely a moment before they launched at each other, fists cocked back. Gaara twisted in the air when Naruto dodged and landed another punch on the same cheek as before. Naruto landed hard on his foot and knee, the chakra usage from summoning Ryujin exhausting him after all the summons and scrolls he'd called and spammed. He shakily walked over to Gaara, one step at a time. The Suna-nin glared at him.

"My existence won't be put out! It won't be erased!" Fear began to replace the anger, his eyes going wide with it. "D-Don't come closer!" The sense of kinship with the Suna-nin came back full force to the whiskered blond, a pained look replacing his serious expression.

"...being alone...being incomplete...what you must feel...how much pain you must be in, I understand that." Gaara's eyes widened in shock and Naruto's only steeled with resolve. "But for the sake of that which is precious to me...if you hurt them...or try to kill them," he glared at the red head, "I will stop you." Naruto kneeled down next to Gaara's fallen form, his eyes still wide in shock.

"What? Until now, you really were, for the sake of other people..." The whiskered blond smiled knowingly at the red head.

"Because they rescued me from the hell of being alone...they acknowledged my existence...that's why they are all the most important to me." A spark of understanding passed through Gaara's eyes.

"...love..." he murmured more to himself. Naruto smiled warmly at him, even after Kankuro and Temari suddenly dropped in front of Gaara, ready to attack.

"See? You think you're alone, but you still have family who cares for you. They've stayed with you despite their fear of what you hold. You shouldn't take that for granted." When the two tensed, Gaara spoke.

"That's enough, stop it," He ordered quietly as he turned to the sky. The two looked back hesitantly, but seemed to concede to him. Kankuro worriedly lifted Gaara and supported him by putting Gaara's arm over his shoulder.

"I understand." Temari looked over at Naruto worriedly as Haku joined his side. Naruto gave the other blond a reassuring smile.

"Don't worry, we will not chase you. It shouldn't be surprising that you escaped while I was weakened from the fight." _'Never mind that Kurama is already refilling my expended chakra and I could probably capture three exhausted suna-nin with little trouble...'_

**_'Hey, genius, you forgot to fix his seal.'_ **Naruto's eyes widened as he watched the Suna siblings run away, cursing rather colorfully in his mind.

"Aniue, Orochimaru and his four sound guards have been defeated. Hokage-sama and Jiraiya-san killed Orochimaru while I and the anbu killed his guards. Hokage-sama had to get the rest of his arm and leg amputated since the kusanagi's poison was killing him and travelling too fast for the med-nin's to slowly extract it. He no longer has a right arm or left leg. Jiraiya-san's also dealing with some broken bones and awkward splinters thanks to the Shodaime." Naruto stretched and checked his own body while leaping back to the village with Haku following silently.

"What about you and the anbu?" He asked.

"I've got a few broken ribs and fractured limbs and I'm covered in disgusting webs, but otherwise I'm ok, same with the anbu. Oh, I also have chakra exhaustion."

"Hinata? What about you?"

"Fine, Naruto. I've been helping evacuees escape unharmed to the safe houses with the help of Rajah, Father and Neji even helped as well. Thanks to us, your summons and your kage bunshin there were less civilian casualties than were expected and very few dead." Naruto was relieved to hear that, but he was concerned about the actual fighting since many of his clones dissipated as soon as they expended their chakra using high chakra usage jutsus.

"Kakashi-sensei...what about the ninja casualties?"

"...Don't worry too much Naruto. Your clones were a much bigger help than you give them credit for. It's not exaggerating to call you a one man army with the way they were going and with the help of the clans, it was pretty easy to get rid of them. I'm happy to say that very few names will be added to the memorial stone." Naruto smiled in relief at that, glad that he managed to save a lot of people, even if he couldn't save everyone.

"What about you, Aniue? There was a lot of after quakes and a small light show visible from here from one of your summon's attacks I'm assuming." Naruto laughed nervously.

"Ah...yeah...I summoned Ryujin and he used a fire attack called Celestial Comet Shower, basically five huge blue fireballs, while Shukaku used five windballs to retaliate. That probably made the light show...and well the quakes are because two humongous creatures were fighting it out. I defeated him...but I...kindalethimgoandforgottofixhisseal..." The others were silent for a moment before Hinata giggle and Kakashi chuckled.

"..only you would forget something so important." Naruto smiled at Sasuke's comment.

"I'll get the chance to fix it when Konoha needs to send someone to Suna to delegate the renegotiation of our treaty with them." The line went silent again.

"...sometimes I forget that you're training to be a clan head and hokage. I bet after your accomplishments in Suna and Sound's failed invasion, the sandaime and council will make you the new hokage." Though Kakashi's comment was light and joking, there was sincerity behind it and Naruto paled at that, though it partially amused him too.

"I'd rather not take the title right now. Not only am I missing the support of the majority of the village, but I'd also rather not take over when the village is in general disorder. Who cares that we won, there's still the matter of property damage, reorganizing our forces to really take note of how many were lost or handicapped, the reports of all the ninja that helped defend the village, and making sure that no enemies slipped past us...all the while making sure to keep up with the intake and outtake of missions to ensure that other villages don't think we were weakened because of the invasion and take the chance to attack themselves...no thank you. I'd rather wait to be rokudaime rather than godaime thank you. I get enough paperwork as is from my two clans...and I'm not even clan head yet!" Naruto could practically see the eye smile when Kakashi spoke again.

"Maah, Naruto, you seem to have a good grasp of what the hokage should do in the current situation. I'll be sure to mention it to Hokage-sama when he asks who the jonin would recommend and/or support as hokage during our meeting with him." Naruto's eyes widened at that before he laughed nervously.

"Haha, that's funny Kakashi-sensei..." Silence was the whiskered blond's reply, "...you're joking right, Kakashi-sensei?" Still no answer. "Kakashi-sensei?!" Nothing. _'No...well even if Kakashi-sensei recommended me to Jiji, joke or not, I wouldn't be chosen. Hell I'm not even a chunin and the majority of the village still hates me, so there's no way I could possibly be chosen...right?' _Of course Kurama chose this time to make him feel even more unsure.

_**'Murphy's Law, kit, Murphy's Law.'**_That was all he said, but he remembered well the definition of that law, and that made Naruto worry much more than before.

* * *

***Fenghuang is the Chinese phoenix. The males are called Feng and the females Huang, but the distinction later blurred to solely feminine to pair with the Chinese dragon which is male.**

****Apparently this means 'steroid blanks', but I thought the original name sounded better so I kept it... **

End of the Chunin exams arc, well more like Sand/Sound invasion, but anyways next chapter will be the invasion aftermath and _possibly_ the beginning of the retrieve Tsunade arc though the premise on the reason they go look for her may change, I'm still debating the change. I am kinda excited to announce, though, that between the Tsunade retrieval arc and the non-existent Sasuke retrieval arc(in my story) I will be writing in the first Naruto movie, clash of Ninja in the land of Snow. It may take me longer to update for however many chapters that movie may go since I like to stick close to the script when it comes to characters not changed by my changes in the story so that means I will have to watch and write the movie scene for scene, line for line while changing team 7's lines and possibly changing story-line depending on how differently they'd react in canon situations. I haven't seen the movie in a while so I can't say for sure, but I', pretty sure some things will be different. Anyways, hope you liked the chapter and as always, thanks for reading (=u=)


	16. Ch 16 Hokage-sama's Busy Day

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.

AN: To answer the question of one of the reviews I got in the previous chapter; Yes, Koga refers to the character from InuYasha, I'm happy you were able to get that from how little he spoke. Akela is the wolf pack leader from Jungle Book and Akira is from a manga called Wolf Guy- Okami no Monshou, but I don't think I wrote them enough for people to be able to know who they are.

* * *

"Above anything, Konoha needs a strong leader to rely on right now. While you helped prevent many casualties for both ninja and civilians, the power of Konoha still declined and the people are becoming fearful. Under these circumstances, we need to make preparations for an upcoming crisis because we don't know whether or not neighboring villages will see this as an opportunity to attack. Until the power of the village is restored I've formed a committee that's formed of several top ninja, mostly clan heads." Naruto sighed as he looked around the room, noting said clan heads, some outstanding jonin, and Jiraiya standing behind and to the side of the hokage's seat.

"Yeah, I already know all this Hokage-Jiji," many snickered at the nickname, "and I offered to regenerate your arm and leg before you so blatantly refused three days ago and now I can't even if I wanted to. I can only do it if the wound is at least one day old. Stubborn old man..." He muttered the last part, those nearby smirking when they heard. "What I don't understand is why I'm _here_, in this meeting with said committee and why you're explaining this to me." Those that knew Naruto all gave him a similar smile that made him uneasy, the hokage also smiling at him.

"I'm getting to that, Naruto. The committee and I have been discussing it for these three days...who I have chosen to succeed the title of hokage." Naruto glanced back and forth between Jiraiya's and the hokage's creepy grins end pointed accusingly at Jiraiya, shouting.

"Don't tell me you made Ero-sannin hokage! That'd be horrible! He'd use your crystal ball to peek on woman all the time for the sake of his research! He'll change the dress code of kunoichi! He'll make it mandatory for shinobi to read that trash he calls literature!" Some people hid their snickers behind coughs while others did not bother to hide their laughter. Jiraiya growled at the whiskered blond, glaring at him.

"Brat!" The hokage raised his one arm to shush Jiraiya, who was smiling in amusement.

"No, Naruto, he's not going to become hokage, but we've already decided on who we are going to choose." Naruto tilted his head curiously.

"Who?" The hokage smiled warmly at him.

"You."

"...WHAT?!" Naruto paled frighteningly fast when he said that. "No way! You can't make me hokage! I barely just took the title of clan head for my clans two days ago when you named Sasuke and I special jonin!" Many were somewhat shocked at how much Naruto seemed to be fighting this, Hiashi simply stared impassively at the whiskered blond.

"For someone who has said his dream is to be hokage the majority of his life, you are certainly declining the honor vehemently." Naruto glared at the Hyuga clan head.

"I did not plan on becoming the godaime hokage. I was aiming for rokudaime at earliest. I was planning on becoming clan head and becoming accustomed to running two clans, building up my experience as a leader in both a political and shinobi front, and gaining the acknowledgement of the village before even thinking of myself as an appropriate candidate for the title of hokage. As it stands, I've been a clan head and special jonin for all of two days, and have the comfort of knowing that the majority of the village still wants me dead!" He turned back to the hokage.

"You say that the villagers are fearful and that they need a strong leader to rely on. How will making the one person they hate and fear the most their hokage make them feel safe? They still think of me as the kyuubi incarnate! How do you think they will react when you name me hokage! There would be civil unrest until I am deposed, it could even cause a rebellion! And the last thing Konoha needs right now is a civil war!" Now all were staring wide eyed at the whiskered blond in shock.

"Do you really believe that the villagers hate you so strongly?" Inoichi asked incredulously.

"They have given me little cause to believe otherwise, Yamanaka-san." Naruto replied stiffly. "I'd have thought you and Ibiki-san would know more intimately of why I am...cautious towards the villagers. After all, it was you two that headed most of my cases." Inoichi flinched at that, remembering some of the more bloody cases he'd received.

"It seems that you haven't gone out much in the last three days, huh, gaki?" Naruto raised a brow at the crazy snake lady.

"No, I was somewhat busy integrating the additional paperwork that comes with being a clan head and using my clones to regrow forestry destroyed by my battle with the ichibi. I've also been rather busy at the hospital since they called in everyone with medical liscences as well as helping rebuild parts of the village that were destroyed by the larger scale battles done in Konoha walls, as per Hokage-Jiji's request because of my wood release." Eyes widened at that.

"You have wood release?!" Naruto's eyes widened at that and he turned to look at the hokage.

"You didn't tell them?" The hokage shrugged, looking sheepish.

"I was planning on telling them after you accepted the title." He looked at the assembled committee strangely.

"Why do you think hokage-Jiji would give a freshly promoted special jonin so many important tasks, among them the delegation concerning Suna's conditions of surrender and the beginnings of a new alliance. You didn't think he'd give the task of fixing the seal on their jinchuuriki to just anybody did you?" More eyes widened, more mouths flopped open. Naruto turned and gave an exasperated look to the hokage.

"You didn't tell them that either?" Hiruzen chuckled.

"They didn't even know you were a sealing master." The exasperated look did not fade.

"Why the hell did you agree to make me hokage if you didn't know about my more prominent skills? My wood release, my seal mastery, do you even know about my summons?" A few people raised their hands like school children, among them were Kakashi, Hiashi, and Zabuza. Naruto sighed again.

"Anyone _not_ related to my team or clan in some way?" The hands went down and a lazy sigh followed the awkward silence that had ensued.

"I know that you have the toad summon from Jiraiya-sama. I also know you have the wolf and tiger summoning contract from Shikamaru, and it's also easy to guess that the blue dragon and the giant rainbow one we saw fighting the ichibi in the distance was your summon as well. Then there's the phoenixes that helped to heal anyone injured as soon as Konoha was declared victorious and those haven't been seen since before the decline of the Senju clan." Anko's eyes nearly popped out of their sockets.

"You have FIVE summoning contracts?!" Naruto shrugged weakly. Anko shook her head roughly, as if to get rid of the shock. "No...anyways, what I meant to say is that if you'd gone out a little, you'd see how differently the villagers see you now." Naruto stiffened, the statement putting him on guard, expecting the worst.

"What do you mean?" Choza shook his head.

"It's not bad, Naruto-san." Naruto raised a brow at the honorific, but didn't comment. "You seem to underestimate the gratitude of the people whose lives you saved and their family and friends. Many of the villagers have already changed their opinion of you, some going so far as to see you as a hero since all most of them saw was a bunch of your kage bunshin running around fighting, summoning animals to help, and saving people." The whiskered blond's eyes widened at that, disbelief written all over his face.

"...not possible..." he muttered under his breath, but most heard him.

"Well believe it, gaki!" Anko shouted. "And you can't even say it's because of your family name! Those mindless sheep didn't even have the chance to accept that, much less plan to start respecting you and sucking up to you because of it before the invasion started. The mindless sheep upgraded from mindless sheep to stupid sheep when they actually formed their own opinions about you after the invasion." Naruto barely heard her.

_'The villagers...have acknowledged me? No, it can't be that easy! They've beaten me since I was 8, they never stopped their cold glares up to the third part of the chunin exams! They can't just go from one extreme to another! How can me saving a few lives make them get over years of animosity?!' _Naruto thought frantically, his heart beat quickening in shock.

_**'Calm down, kit! I swear, you're going to give yourself a heart attack if you keep thinking too hard on this. You're 12 for Kami's sake!'**_Naruto regained control of his heart rate, taking deep breaths. _**'Now I have something to say that you probably never thought of before because you're such a goody two-shoes. The majority of you flesh-bags are small-minded and stupid.'**_He continued before Naruto could reprimand him. _**'Ninja are less small minded and stupid, but they're still stupid. You meat-bites are all so fucking emotional it makes me sick. Any little action can make one of you love someone for the rest of your tiny little lives or make them hate your guts to the point where they'll do anything to kill you and then one other little action later, it's the fucking opposite and suddenly you kill the person you love or you fuck the brains out of the person you just wanted to kill. I tolerate you because you seem pretty simple about your emotions...in a good way. You make more rational decisions despite your feelings, but you keep them in mind and they're fucking consistent unlike most of the other wishy washy flea-turds that infest the Elemental Nations. Don't think everyone is rational and consistent about their emotions like you are. Those dickless sheep you call villagers would worship your feet at the drop of a hat if you paid them enough, of course you saving their miserable little lives would earn you their respect and admiration. Why you would want the acknowledgement of the shitstains that made your life a living hell, I will never understand, but it shouldn't be that shocking. That wrinkly old flesh-bag you call hokage probably just made the smartest decision of his life by naming you hokage, so stop trying to convince them not to hand over your dream on a silver platter and take the damn title!'**_

Naruto stood there, stunned at Kurama's very long and very passionate speech, overwhelmed at how much encouragement he was showing, despite all the insults towards humans, but that just showed Kurama actually disliked them because of what they did to his vessel. It almost sounded like something that Sasuke would say...without all the insults towards humans though...

_'Kurama...that was-'_

**_'Yeah, yeah. Don't get used to it. Now stop talking to me and address your ninja, you've been standing around staring into space for the last few minutes like an idiot.'_ **Naruto's eyes widened in realization as he brought his attention back to the committee, all of whom were giving him strange looks.

"Er...sorry...I was-"

"Talking with the giant fox in your gut?" Anko provided helpfully. Naruto turned from Anko to the hokage in shock.

"You didn't tell them about my sealing expertise, bloodline, and summons, but you told them I could communicate with the kyuubi?" Naruto asked, seriously questioning the hokage's judgement skills. The hokage opened his mouth to respond, but Jiraiya beat him to it.

"He told them while you were in la-la land, brat."

_'Oh...that makes me feel a little better...kind of.' _Hiashi brought back his attention.

"So what did the kyuubi say to you?" Naruto hesitated before answering the Hyuga head.

"Um...among other things...he kind of told me to shut up and take the title." Eyes widened all around again. That was happening rather frequently in this meeting.

"The kyuubi _encouraged you _to become hokage?" Anko shouted in disbelief. Hiashi ignored her shout._  
_

"What do you mean among other things?" The whiskered blond shuffled uncomfortably in place.

"Well, he kind of insulted the intelligence of the human race...a lot and...insulted the decision-making skills of Hokage-Jiji as well." Some snickered at the last. Shikaku sighed, a small smile on his lips.

"Well, he's still technically the strongest of bijuu and humans are the cause of him being sealed away for so long so it's a given that he'd have animosity towards humans and if he's attached to Naruto then he'd have more reason to hate Konoha since they've treated him so poorly." Naruto flushed both pleased and embarrassed that Kurama hated people for his sake. It worried him a little, but Kurama hated everyone save for a select few so it didn't bother him as much as he'd thought to know Kurama hated someone because of him, in fact he thought it was actually kind of nice. The hokage cleared his throat.

"Yes, well...so it's agreed that Naruto will become hokage?" The committee all nodded in agreement before Hiruzen turned to Naruto. "And you agree to accept this honor?" Naruto didn't hesitate to nod in agreement, making Hiruzen smile proudly. "Then it's settled. Tomorrow we will hold the inauguration of the Godaime Hokage. Until then, I'll be filling Naruto in on what he needs to know. Dismissed."

* * *

Naruto cursed as he and his clones worked furiously through the paperwork that had accumulated after the invasion, sending Hiruzen an accusing look. "You planned this, didn't you, you old geezer! You knew about the paper work that would come from the invasion and decided to pass it on to some other sucker! That sucker being me! I already regret taking the title from you!" Naruto shouted as he stamped another document with his own personal godaime seal which was magically ready for him after the meeting. Hiruzen, meanwhile, was sitting on the other side of the desk, smoking his pipe and relaxing, a smirk on his wizened face.

"Now, Naruto, it's not that bad." Just as he finished his sentence, two anbu appeared in the room, bowing respectfully to Naruto. The sight actually gave Naruto a sense of discomfort.

"Hokage-sama. The missing-nin Kisame Hishigake from Kiri and Itachi Uchiha from Konoha have been spotted in the village. Currently jonin Kurenai Yuhi, Asuma Sarutobi, and Kakashi Hatake are engaging them in combat." After getting over the equal discomfort of being called 'Hokage-sama' he sent Hiruzen a dry look who just looked at him sheepishly, shrugging. Naruto stood, his hands flat on his desk.

"Send any anbu not on patrol or currently on a mission to back them up and send two to Sasuke secretly to ensure he doesn't hear of this or do anything stupid. I want to know why they're here. If you can't capture them, kill them." Naruto stated seriously as he headed out, leaving his kage bunshin to take care of the paperwork, the two anbu following him.

"Are you going to confront them as well Hokage-sama?" One asked in concern. Naruto frowned as he leapt over the roofs.

"The fact that Itachi Uchiha has returned with another S-class missing-nin says he has a purpose here. There are only two purposes that they could achieve coming in a group of two, to capture or kill a certain person or people and there are only two people of interest that Itachi or any of his possible employers could be interested in at the moment." The other anbu finished for him.

"You or Sasuke Uchiha." Naruto nodded sharply while one of the anbu diverted from them, no doubt heading to anbu headquarters.

* * *

"Your target is the kyuubi inside Naruto isn't it?" Naruto's eyes widened as he and his anbu neared the scene. "You have begun to move, you think we don't know? The name of your organization...it's Akatsuki isn't it?" Naruto held up a hand to stop the anbu squad behind him as they watched the scene quietly. The two missing-nin looked surprised while Kurenai and Asuma looked confused.

"Akatsuki?" Asuma questioned. Itachi stared at the three.

"Kisame...! Take Kakashi out. It's time for these people to disappear." Naruto motioned the anbu forward when Kisame began to charge, all shocked when Gai suddenly appeared to protect the three before the anbu could. They were quick to adapt as they surrounded the two missing-nin, Naruto next to Gai with two anbu flanking him, his eyes on Itachi's cloak.

"...the hell!" Kisame shouted. Naruto whipped his head to Kakashi when he heard the man fall into the water.

"Boar, take Kakashi to the hospital." Said anbu nodded and immediately shunshin'ed away as soon as he had Kakashi. "So Akatsuki is after the kyuubi? Do you plan on starting an incident between Konoha and your organization by attempting to kidnap one of Konoha's shinobi?" Naruto frowned at the thought, knowing they were nowhere near ready to start a war with a group of S-class missing-nin and whoever else they may be allied with.

"Oi gaki-sama! Why the hell did you leave me out of the action?!" Zabuza shouted as he made an appearance, Kisame's eyes widening when he recognized his old comrade.

"Zabuza?! The hell are you doing as a Konoha-nin?!" Zabuza's eyes widened when he saw the other swordsman of the mist.

"Kisame?! You fish bastard, the hell are you doing joining a shady organization?!" Kisame growled and looked ready to attack when Itachi spoke.

"We did not come here to start a war...regrettably, this is nothing more than nonsense. Let's leave." Kisame grit his teeth.

"With this much trouble it's unavoidable." Naruto growled.

"Oh no you don't!" Two kage bunshin leapt out of the water behind them throwing two seals on their backs and catching them by surprise. Both were caught as they fell unconscious by two anbu. Naruto's tense posture deflated as he stared at the two incredulously. "...that's it?" Everyone stared at the whiskered blond strangely.

"What do you mean, Hokage-sama?" He walked over cautiously to the two that the anbu had just tied up.

"I mean, these are two S-class missing-nin, one is called the tailless bijuu while the other supposedly killed the Uchiha clan in a single night and I just...took them out with modified paralysis and chakra suppressing seals. Granted I masked my chakra with nature chakra, but still...should it have really been that easy?" The anbu turned back to the two secured criminals, unsure themselves now.

"That's true...perhaps it's just a show of how skilled you are? Or perhaps they underestimated you or were focused on us making a move rather than you?" One of the anbu offered. Naruto only shook his head, still feeling strangely empty with how easy that was, as if he expected a really big fight.

"Maybe. I'm probably still tense from my fight with the ichibi, I just expected this to be a lot harder...I guess it's true that even the strongest ninja can be taken down if they underestimate their opponent. Take them to Ibiki, tell him to keep them unconscious until I've decided what to do with them."

"Hai, Hokage-sama." The anbu chorused as the majority of them went with the group doing the delivery, two of them staying with Naruto. Asuma, Gai, and Kurenai all just stared at Naruto in shock.

"Hokage-sama? _You're _our new hokage?" The anbu tensed at Kurenai's tone, Naruto turning a cold glare at her.

"What of it Yuhi-san? Do you have a problem with me being hokage? If so, please, tell me your concerns?" Asuma cast her a worried look as she flushed at her quickly realized mistake.

"N-no, Hokage-sama! I apologize!" Naruto only sighed and turned away.

"Why don't you worry about getting Asuma treated rather than worrying if a dead last jinchuuriki is fit to be hokage." He and the anbu shunshin'ed away without another word. Both were silent for a moment before Asuma spoke.

"...we only just found out who the new hokage was and you're already on his bad side." Kurenai flinched before sending a dirty look to Asuma who was only smirking at her.

* * *

Naruto watched as Sasuke read the file silently, Hiruzen and Jiraiya tense at his side. Naruto himself couldn't believe what was in the file and he was worried about how Sasuke would react to the new information. Naruto stiffened when Sasuke dropped the file onto the desk, leaning back into his chair.

"Well, it certainly makes sense to me now," he stated calmly. Naruto's eyes widened at that.

"...that's it? You just found out the truth behind the Uchiha Massacre and that's all you have to say?" Sasuke shrugged, though he did frown more prominently.

"You kind of made me get over my obsession with revenge, aniue, and you also helped me accept my clan's demise. Once I was thinking with a clear head, there were a lot of things that didn't add up. First of all, no matter how strong Itachi-nii was, there's no way he could have taken out the entire Uchiha clan. Second, before I passed out when he used tsukuyomi, he looked at me with guilt and regret and even shed a tear. Third, what other reason would he leave me alive besides to get stronger and kill him in order to redeem the Uchiha name, he even gave me what he thought were the means for me to get stronger. He thought, me being a typical Uchiha, I would focus on my hatred for him and try to get revenge for the clan, but then you came along and made me an atypical Uchiha that's more focused on doing whatever the hell I damn well please with my life." The three sweat dropped at the entirely casual way he put it, his stance still relaxed.

"So...you just...forgive him? Just like that?" Jiraiya asked incredulously. Sasuke shrugged noncommittally.

"I don't know. I guess. I mean the bigger reason he didn't kill me is because he loved me so much, right? And he was devoted enough to Konoha that he was willing to wipe out our clan for it. Honestly, I would have done the same if I were in his shoes and Naruto were my younger brother." The others looked shocked at this. "I'm definitely disillusioned about my clan, but I can't say I didn't really see it coming. Ever since I got those three vassals, they've been slowly cleaning and maintaining the Uchiha compound and they kept bringing me documents and journals that had me questioning the loyalty of my clan. Granted Konoha hadn't exactly been charitable to the Uchiha clan since its founding, but that didn't mean a coup d'etat was the answer, besides, my dad was kind of a bastard anyways so I think he deserved to die the most." The three sweat dropped again at his completely logical conclusion.

"Otouto...your ability to think so logically and objectively is beginning to scare me."

"Especially when you add it with Uchiha pride and arrogance," Jiraiya added, muttering to himself. Sasuke smirked.

"I know." It was silent for a moment before Sasuke spoke again. "So, you're planning to let them go?" Naruto nodded sharply.

"Itachi was assigned to be our inside spy in Akatsuki. Once we wake him up and inform him of the situation he'll report his findings and be released with his unconscious partner. It should be easy for Itachi to cast a small genjutsu on him to make him believe it was only Gai that showed up at the fight and that they were forced to retreat. Depending on the information he gives us, I will give an estimate of how much longer he has to continue the mission before he's able to come back. Of course that means telling the village the truth before he gets here and making sure Konoha's recovered enough that we can handle any attack the Akatsuki may send in case they pursue Itachi after he defects from their organization." Naruto sighed, rubbing his temples as he tried to will away the migraine that tempted to set in. Sasuke's smirk grew.

"Looks like your new job's already starting to get to you." Naruto didn't even react, simply sighing as he responded.

"Yeah, I see how Jiji wrinkled, grayed, and became bald so quickly. If the fighting doesn't kill you, the stress will." A tick mark appeared on Hiruzen's head as Jiraiya snickered.

"I'm right here, you know." Naruto snapped his head up and looked around, his eyes wide.

"Otouto, did you just hear something?" Sasuke just looked at him as if he were crazy.

"What are you talking about, aniue? I didn't hear anything." Jiraiya didn't even bother holding in his laughter this time, laughing loudly at Hiruzen's frustrated expression, Naruto and Sasuke sharing an eerily similar smirk.

* * *

"Itachi Uchiha," Naruto frowned when the conscious missing-nin bowed like the anbu would.

"Hai, Hokage-sama." Naruto nodded towards the anbu near the cell and spoke as he let Itachi out.

"I see that Boar has informed you of the current situation and received your report?" Itachi didn't get up from his position.

"Hai, Hokage-sama." Naruto frowned more prominently, uncomfortable with his otouto's older brother kneeling in front of him.

"After I speak with you, Sasuke will be given time to speak with you before you must leave again." The frown stayed as Itachi did not react. He let himself relax and sighed. "You damn Uchiha have to be so good at being emotionless bastards, don't you?" Naruto said the words lightly, warmly, showing the comment was not truly meant as an insult.

"I doubt I would have been able to infiltrate the Akatsuki so perfectly were I to act otherwise." Itachi stated simply, a tinge of amusement in his voice. Naruto smiled warmly at him as Itachi straightened, standing up again, his eyes showing inky black depths rather than the red of the sharingan.

"I'm sure you would have found a way." A moment of silence followed as Naruto gathered his thoughts of what he wished to say. "I feel like anything I say will only cheapen what you've done, but here I am trying anyways," another moment of silence.

"...I...cannot even begin to imagine the selflessness and utter loyalty it must have taken for you to feel in order to undertake the murder of your clan. I cannot begin to understand how much pain, how much guilt or shame you must have felt after doing it. And I don't think I'll ever realize how much resolve it must have taken for you to join Akatsuki and leave behind your home and the only family you had left. You sacrificed so much for Konoha yet your sacrifice was buried beneath a lie that earned you Konoha's hatred." Naruto shook his head, shock and disbelief coloring his thoughts as he tried not to think too hard on the fortitude it must have taken to do all that.

"It came to my attention that you had planned on having Sasuke kill you in order to redeem the Uchiha clan," Itachi stiffened, "Sasuke seems to think otherwise." Itachi's eyes widened. Naruto smiled. "It seems he'd rather rebuild the clan from the ground up, recreate it...with the help of his nii-san." Itachi looked down slightly, his eyes brightening with emotion.

"He never was one to listen to me..." Naruto chuckled at that. "...I hear he calls you aniue." The whiskered blond raised a brow at the mention.

"Yes...why? Don't tell me it bothers you." Naruto asked teasingly. Itachi let out a short chuckled, surprising Naruto a little.

"No, if anything I'm glad he was able to become so close to someone after what I did...I brought it up because I wondered if that made me your older brother or you mine."

"That...is a good question." Usually, it would be the oldest is considered the older brother, but seeing as that didn't apply with Naruto and Sasuke, that meant it also didn't apply with Itachi despite the years between their ages. Naruto only shook his head. "Despite thinking of Sasuke as my otouto, like you, I can't bring myself to think of you as family. No offense, but regardless of the fact that your Sasuke's blood brother I don't see you as family." Naruto thought on it. "I guess I see you more as a comrade or close friend?" Itachi looked at the whiskered blond in amusement.

"I think that's a rather generous way to be viewed, considering you only recently discovered the truth behind my infamous actions and only just met me." Naruto shook his head, smiling knowingly at the elder Uchiha.

"You and I both know the last isn't true Weasel-san." Itachi's eyes widened a fraction.

"...so you immediately figured out who I was." Naruto grinned.

"I made it a point to remember everything I could about the few anbu that bothered to really protect me when I was younger." This time the elder Uchiha did smirk a little.

"It seems that you gaining the title of hokage is not just for display." Naruto's grin immediately turned to a pout, his hand grabbing at his heart dramatically, acting as if he was physically wounded.

"I'm hurt Itachi-san! How could you doubt the badassitude of your new hokage?" Itachi's smirk widened a little.

"Is 'badassitude' even a real word?"

* * *

AN:(cont.) No * notes this time. Lots of long winded speeches in this one. Hopefully the Naruto becoming godaime thing came as a surprise...hopefully a pleasant one...hopefully no one is bothered too much by that...I think next chapter will be addressing certain things that may have happened off scene in previous chapters or things I just didn't mention whether purposefully or accidentally, some things will be there. It should also be the start of the Tsunade retrieval arc as long as the former of what I mentioned doesn't eat up all the space for the chapter. Her reasons for being retrieved have obviously changed, but that'll be explained whenever it is I'm starting the arc. Until then, as always thanks for reading, hope you liked it...(=v=)


	17. Ch 17 Recovery & Retrieval Mission

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto

AN: I've fixed a few discrepancies that came to my attention from some reviews and pm's from my readers in chapters 1, 3, and 16. Nothing major just a few words corrected and any spelling errors I caught along the way, though I'm sure I've missed some...I'm also sorry for not writing in a while. Not only has my 'new' charger been turning on and off and subsequently shutting off my laptop at random intervals, which has hopefully stopped for good now, but I've also started college just last week and already I'm buried in hw, it's crazy. I'll try to write as much as I can when I finish hw and I'm sorry I can't promise anything better...

* * *

Naruto laid back in his chair, staring up at the ceiling as his kage bunshin did the paperwork, more kage bunshin running around the village helping with repairs and helping out the hospital and working out a new regimen for the academy. He sighed, making the brush he had been balancing on his nose fall from the breath. He groaned, closing his eyes.

"This is so boring!" He suddenly shouted, sitting up and slamming his hands on his desk, making the anbu guarding him jump in surprise at the sudden movement. "Are you telling me this is all the hokage does all day?!" Naruto shouted at no one in particular. The anbu were silent for a moment before one of them decided to answer.

"Hai, Hokage-sama, though none of the previous hokage were able to send so many reinforced clones to help the village like you are...if anything you are much more proactive than our previous hokages." Naruto groaned again and slammed his head on the desk.

"Dammit if all I'm going to be doing is sitting in a cushy chair, I'm going to get all weak and flabby like Jiji. How the hell is the hokage supposed to stay in top shape if all he does is sit around and do paperwork?" The anbu didn't know how to respond to that since it was true. They couldn't remember the last time the sandaime had gone out to train, always stuck in the office doing paperwork. The anbu were thankfully rescued from answering when a new scroll came in from Wave.

"Oh hey! Tazuna-oji-san got my request!"

"Request, Hokage-sama?" One of the more curious anbu asked, not that the others could blame him. Watching the young hokage work was fascinating in itself. At least their jobs weren't so boring anymore.

"I sent a request to a...carpenter I met on a C-rank escort mission asking him if he could help with our rebuilding if he wasn't too busy with getting Wave back on its feet after that Gato business." Naruto looked sheepish after he finished reading the letter. "It seems that we're going to get more help than we need since so many from Wave volunteered to help after finding my signature stamp at the bottom...well at least that takes care of the reconstruction."

"Excuse me, Hokage-sama, but why would the Wave country be so eager to help? You only mentioned that you met him on a C-rank escort mission, right?" Naruto scratched the back of his head as he explained.

"Er, yeah, actually the mission turned A/S-rank when Zabuza and the Demon Brothers got involved. I made a deal with Zabuza and got him to our side and took down Gato with Sasuke, giving Wave back their belongings and taking a generous pay for Konoha." The anbu were all stunned at this. Of course they had known that Zabuza and his comrades had joined their ranks, but they had never bothered to ask how since it wasn't as rare as one might expect for a missing-nin to join up with another village when they were tired of running. They hadn't realized that it was their young hokage who had personally convinced and brought them here.

Naruto sighed as one of his clones handed him a scroll. He read the document carefully when he saw it came from their renewed allies from Suna. His expression turned thoughtful as he considered the proposal on the scroll.

"Boar, go retrieve Sasuke Uchiha for me." The anbu bowed and nodded, leaving immediately after the usual 'hai, hokage-sama.'

* * *

"So what'd you call me for, aniue?" The Uchiha asked as he sat down across from the godaime. Naruto ran a hand through his hair as he sat back in his chair.

"I just received a scroll from Suna discussing other possible ways to better strengthen the alliance between us and they sent me and interesting proposal." Naruto replied. Sasuke looked at the blond in mild interest.

"What is it?" Naruto leaned his head on his fist as he looked at the Uchiha.

"An arranged marriage with the daughter of the previous kazekage." Sasuke's eyes widened.

"They want to set you up with Gaara's sister?!" He asked in shock. Naruto smiled in amusement.

"Not me, otouto...you." The Uchiha's eyes widened even further.

"...why?" The whiskered hokage straightened and gave another cursory glance to the scroll as he answered.

"Well, you are the heir to the prestigious Uchiha clan, you have close relations with the current hokage and therefore political pull. You are an outstanding shinobi of Konoha, becoming a special jonin at 12 years old...and Temari of Suna has shown an interest in you...apparently." Sasuke flushed slightly at the last and Naruto smirked mischievously, knowing that Sasuke had a thing for the older girl.

"The arrangement is made so that Temari will live in Konoha three years prior to your marriage at 15 so you can appropriately celebrate your honeymoon together, it also gives you two a chance to get to know each other better and see if you would be able to live together as a married couple. The engagement can be called off at any time during the three years if you are to accept. If not I can send a polite decline or even offer a different shinobi as recommendation to be paired with Temari-"

"No!" Naruto looked visibly startled by the Uchiha's shout. Said Uchiha cleared his throat to hide his embarrassment. "I mean...no, that won't be necessary. You can tell them that I accept the proposal. It'd be an honor to be engaged to the previous kazekage's daughter and it's beneficial for both villages anyways." Naruto gave the Uchiha a knowing smirk.

"Uh-huh...a strong, mature, independent, beautiful kunoichi who's more focused on training than shopping and boys and who doesn't have a bloodline that would get in the way of having children with the sharingan." Sasuke flushed progressively more and more as Naruto went on. "Temari definitely fits all of those categories doesn't she, otouto. Don't worry, I approve, I even knew you would go after an older woman with the kind of criteria you had." Sasuke spluttered indignantly, the anbu's stifled snickering not helping him.

"Sh-shut up, aniue!" He glared harshly when all the whiskered hokage did was laugh. "...If you're quite done making fun of me, is there anything else you needed me for or is that it?" Naruto sobered a little.

"Ah, no, there's a few more things I need to say before you go, but the rest of team 7 has to get here. Before that, though I have to go through the pile of shit that the recently deceased Danzo and his adviser lackeys left me. Well that and a few other things, but you don't have to worry about that." Naruto stated blandly, motioning to two piles separately labelled ROOT and Adviser paperwork respectively.

"What are you going to do with ROOT?" Sasuke asked in mild interest.

"Place it under Anbu as a separate faction, like the hunter-nin since most of the agents were unable to be rehabilitated and I hate to admit it, but the purpose of ROOT is a necessary evil for Konoha. We need agents like them that won't leave a trail heading back to Konoha and if they do...well technically ROOT doesn't exist anymore so it's fine." Sasuke gave the blond a strange look.

"So you're continuing where Danzo left off?" Naruto looked comically affronted by that.

"Kami no! I am NOT doing exactly what Danzo did! Seriously, did you forget who I am?! I already rehabilitated some of the younger agents and had them reassigned to regular ninja placements between genin and anbu depending on their skills and I already have Shikaku, Ibiki, and the head Anbu discussing their new training regimen." Naruto ranted in a scolding tone. Sasuke had the decency to look at least a little sheepish at having indirectly accused Naruto of doing anything Danzo would approve of.

"And the advisers? What headaches did they leave you?" The Uchiha asked, not-so-subtly changing the subject. Naruto gave him a stern look as he went back to signing things as he spoke.

"I have to reverse and improve the horrendous changes they made to the ninja and civilian schools, revert taxes back to the way they were before they were feeding the advisers' pockets, and handle all their paperwork which involves most civilian(trivial) things like outlandish requests and complaints that have no business being submitted in the first place. Seriously, our paperwork system is shit. The chunin assigned to filtering out this paperwork are most likely passing through all the paperwork because they don't feel like sitting up on their fat asses and doing their jobs." Naruto grumbled, pissed at just the thought. Sasuke sweat-dropped at his aniue's consternation, as did the anbu guarding him.

"Why don't you just set up more strict parameters for their jobs? Actually I'm shocked you haven't punished them yet." Sasuke shivered at the predatory grin that the blond godaime gave as soon as the words were out of his mouth.

"Why do you think I'm stuck with the civilian paperwork right now*?" Naruto asked all too sweetly. The anbu and Sasuke let out a collective shiver, the former because they were there to witness Naruto's 'chewing them out' and Sasuke because he knew how sadistic Naruto could get when he was angry.

"Well, that aside I was also planning to appoint three new advisers, though they'll be quite different from the previous three." Sasuke opened his mouth to ask who he was planning to choose when the doors near violently burst open, nearly being ripped off their hinges.

"Hokage-sama! We have arrived just as you instructed! What is it-" Lee's enthusiastic shouts suddenly stopped when his eyes widened as he focused on just who was behind the hokage desk, wearing the hokage robes. Before the three stunned shinobi could get a word in a drawling mumble beat them to it.

"Troublesome..." The three turned to the young Nara. "I knew that the Sandaime had retired and appointed a new hokage, but I didn't think he'd give it to you so soon. No wonder my dad was asking me all those strange questions." Shikamaru mumbled the last part to himself obviously remembering whatever it is his father asked him and putting the pieces together.

"I have to say that I am rather surprised to see you behind that desk so soon, Naruto-san." Neji stated politely adding his input as Shino and he entered.

"I as well, expected you to achieve your dream much later. I still, however, congratulate you for achieving your dream, regardless if it was sooner or later." Naruto smiled warmly at Shino.

"Thanks, Shino. That means a lot." And it did. It was easy for Naruto to tell that Shino meant what he said, having stated, whether purposefully or not, that he had believed Naruto could become hokage since the beginning, even if he didn't believe Naruto would become hokage so early. "Though it also took me by surprise as well, so you're not the only one," the blond godaime stated with a silly grin. Lee returned the grin while Neji only shook his head, smirking, Shikamaru himself only sighing though the slight twitch of his lips indicated he hid a smile.

"Well, I don't think it's so surprising. Kakashi-sensei did after all say that he would recommend you for the position." Naruto's head snapped to Hinata and Kakashi** who were just entering the room.

"Sorry I'm late-" Kakashi started.

"You're not late, I summoned you three hours ago on purpose, so you're right on time." Kakashi looked shocked for all of one second before he fell to his knees, his arms in the air.

"NOOOOOO! MY PERFECT RECORD!" The others sweat dropped at their sensei's dramatic tendencies before Naruto cleared his throat to regain their attention.

"Yes...well, first of all," he turned to Hinata and the others, "I'm sorry, Jiji forgot about the results of the chunin exam, the only reason he promoted Sasuke and I so quickly is because we were kind of more closely related to the happenings of the invasion, and things were kind of hectic for me in the paperwork department after I became hokage. I still haven't even been publicly inaugurated yet..." Naruto muttered the last part to himself.

"Aniue, the point?" Sasuke reminded him. Naruto coughed.

"Er, right. Hinata Hyuga, for your performance in the chunin exams and your help during Suna and Sound's invasion, I hereby promote you to chunin." He handed her a green flak jacket with a sheepish grin. "I would promote you to jonin, but Jiji and I thought you needed to build some experience in leading a team, sorry." Hinata smiled warmly at him as she took the vest, shaking her head.

"No, it's alright. I didn't expect to jump to jonin just because you two did, or because you became hokage. Besides, it's true. I'm not a natural leader like you and I'm not comfortable bossing people around like Sasuke is." Said Uchiha sniffed disdainfully turning his nose up at the Hyuga as he turned away. Hinata giggled at that. "So, don't worry, I understand, and I'm happy that I got promoted to chunin." Naruto returned her warms smile.

"Good." He looked to Shikamaru next, who straightened when he saw Naruto's serious gaze. "Shikamaru Nara, for your performance in the chunin exams and your aid during the Sand-Sound invasion I hereby promote you to chunin." The Nara let out a sigh as he stepped up to receive his green vest, relaxing at the casual grin the blond put on as he held it out.

"Troublesome..." Both Naruto and Shikamaru smirked when he took the vest.

"Shino Aburame, Rock Lee, and Neji Hyuga," the three stepped up, "for your aid during the Sand-Sound invasion I hereby promote you three to chunin as well." Lee was outright beaming as he took his vest, the other two more reserved and respectful though both seemed happy. Naruto smiled at the four. "Congratulations to you all." Lee who seemed to have been holding in his excitement, finally exploded.

"YOSH! AND I WOULD LIKE TO CONGRATULATE YOU NARUTO-SAN FOR ACHIEVING YOUR DREAM OF BECOMING HOKAGE!" Naruto flinched at the volume but grinned at the green clad boy nonetheless.

"Thanks, Lee." They all were about to leave when Naruto spoke again. "Oh, Team 7, stay. I still have to talk to you guys." The other four newly promoted chunin just shrugged and left after saying their goodbyes. The team turned to their teammate and hokage expectantly. His smile lessened a little.

"Now about replacing me on team 7..." Hinata and Sasuke's eyes widened. Sasuke glared at the hokage.

"What do you mean replacement?!" The whiskered blond sent the Uchiha a small smile.

"You didn't expect me to stay on the team now that I've become hokage did you?" Sasuke's brows furrowed in frustration at this. Naruto only sighed and grabbed the scroll from the ROOT pile.

"Since Jiji arrested and executed Danzo, Koharu, and Homura for their crimes against Konoha, he'd taken control of ROOT after ensuring that the seal on all of them was removed. Rehabilitating and/or retraining them not to be emotionless suicidal berserkers has been slow going, but thankfully some of the younger ones were more able to be rehabilitated and to be assigned to normal ninja roles. Among them was a fourteen year old agent with incredible ink techniques. Right now he is high jonin, low anbu level. I'm also adding a second captain to 'assist' Kakashi-sensei. Though I say assist, this new captain is more just to stay with me most of the time, though he and Kakashi may switch when the occasion calls for it." He turned to the anbu by the door and nodded to him. The anbu nodded in return and opened the door to reveal a pale boy that looked eerily like Sasuke save for a few differences.

"Team 7, I'd like to introduce you to one of your newest team members, Sai. Sai, this is your new team." Both Sai and team 7 were silent until Sasuke spoke.

"Sai...is that your real name?" Sasuke asked rudely. Before Naruto had the chance to reprimand him, Sai spoke, a false smile on his face.

"Sai is the name I was given for this mission...I'm nobody. I am a tool for Naruto-sama. I do not exist." Naruto sighed and rubbed his temples as his team stared at the newcomer wide-eyed.

"Sai...just...never mind, at least you didn't say Lord Danzo this time." Sai only kept that fake smile on. Apparently Hinata didn't like it very much.

"Why are you smiling like that?" She asked.

"I read in a book that a smile can get you out of a tough situation, even if it's fake." Hinata's brows furrowed at that while Sasuke scoffed, crossing his arms.

"Idiot." Sai turned his false smile to Sasuke.

"The way you look and speak...are you a boy or a girl?" Silence reigned for a short second before anbu were holding Sasuke to restrain him from attacking Sai. Naruto laughed at the scene for a while before he recaptured their attention. He cleared his throat.

"Yes, well...anyways. Though I said Sai was a replacement for me, on paper I'm still a part of team 7, so technically we're now a six man team, but this'll let you guys take on harder missions you wouldn't be allowed since there were only three available members before. This is also to help Sai's rehabilitation process since...as you can see, he still has some issues with understanding emotions and anything related to it... well technically the rehabilitation process has yet to be complete...er, anyways, I swear he didn't mean to offend anyone." Sasuke just glared at the new smiley member while Hinata and Kakashi eyed him warily at least until a shinobi by the door coughed and caught everyone's attention.

"Is, um, is this a bad time Hokage-sama?" Naruto just grinned at the brown, spiky-haired man at the door.

"Not at all! In fact you're right on time Yamato!" Kakashi looked to the newcomer in surprise.

"Tenzo?" Yamato's eyes snapped to Kakashi, eyes widened slightly.

"Kakashi-senpai?" His surprised look quickly turned into a comedic glare. "And I'd prefer it if you call me Yamato!" It was the name for this new assignment and, dammit, he was going to use it! Kakashi only eye smiled at the man.

"Maah, maah, no need to be so uptight." Naruto snickered at the exchange before regathering everyone's attention.

"Yamato here was previously an anbu and technically still is. On paper he's team 7's second captain, but he'll mostly be staying by me in the shadows as and anbu or in sight as a jonin depending on the circumstances. Kakashi-sensei and Yamato may switch around sometimes, but otherwise this is the new permanent team 7. That's all I really wanted to say to you guys." The others nodded, understanding that the meeting was over.

"I gave you guys all the rest of the day to get to know each other better so make use of it because after that it's straight back to missions, we've been a little backed up since the invasion." They all nodded, smiled and said their goodbyes, but not before Naruto shouted something else to Sasuke.

"And otouto! Don't you dare do anything to Sai or I won't tell you when Temari will get here!" Naruto counted to three before he heard a frustrated snarl come from the hall, sitting back in his chair to smirk. "Ahh, it's good to be hokage."

"Already enjoying the perks, gaki?" Naruto glanced at the window in time to see Jiraiya come in through it before taking a seat across from him. Naruto gave a polite smile to his godfather.

"I'd be lying if I said I wasn't." Jiraiya allowed himself a grin before he let himself get serious.

"So what was that about appointing new advisers?" Naruto raised a brow, realizing just how long Jiraiya must have been out there listening in. _'Spymaster indeed...' _

"I'm planning on appointing someone familiar with the day to day happenings of the civilians and who has and understanding of running a business, a teacher from the ninja academy who is more familiar with the younger generation, their parents and the ninja life despite not living it as often, and finally the director/head doctor of the hospital since they'll also be familiar with ninja, but still be in constant contact with civilians and their problems." Jiraiya raised a brow at him, apparently impressed.

"Who'd you choose from the academy?"

"Umino Iruka." Jiraiya's eyes widened slightly.

"Iruka? But he's just a chunin." Naruto frowned.

"Rank has nothing to do with advising. I chose him because he has the experience I'm looking for and that kind of experience is not found on the battlefield." Jiraiya held up his hands in mock surrender.

"And the businessman?" Naruto grinned.

"Teuchi-oji-san!" This time Jiraiya only guffawed.

"You sure you're not letting your favoritism get in the way?" Naruto's grin lessened into a softer smile.

"No, though I don't deny that those two are my more precious people, I chose them because they're able to act unbiased or get past their prejudices or preconceived notions as well as their unique experience and individual good characters. I know with those two that they'll work for the betterment of the village rather than for themselves and unlike others, they won't be afraid to voice their opinions or go against mine since they're already familiar with me." Jiraiya smirked.

"Seems like you've already thought this through, but you look like you're unhappy with the doctor." He pointed out, motioning to Naruto's suddenly unhappy frown.

"I am. The director happens to be one of the men that most advocated my status as a demon child. If it weren't for Jiji's personal medic I'm sure that man would have done everything in his power to make sure I died in that hospital." Jiraiya frowned as well, having heard of Naruto's childhood, if you could call it that, and feeling both enraged at his home village, and guilty for not having been there for his godson. Jiraiya shook himself of his heavy thoughts and grinned.

"Well I've got a solution to your problem!" The whiskered blond looked quizzically at Jiraiya.

"You do?" He asked skeptically. Jiraiya scoffed at the question.

"Of course! I bet the person I recommend for the job of being the director of the hospital could have been the next hokage if you hadn't nabbed it first!" naruto tilted his head to the side in curiosity.

"Who?" Jiraiya's grin grew wider.

"Why, Senju Tsunade of course! All we need to do is go out and find her. Of course that means we can't have a lot of people going. Just me to track her, you to talk to her, and an anbu to follow you since I know those sticks-in-the-mud won't let their precious new little hokage wander out with just me." Naruto only raised a brow at his godfather while his anbu stiffened at the ill hidden, but mild, insult towards both himself and the anbu.

"Are you talking about my alcoholic and gambling addict godmother, Senju Tsunade?" Naruto asked casually. Jiraiya gulped as the whiskered blond languidly sat back in his chair, his head resting on his hand.

"Uhh...yes?" Jiraiya continued before the blond could speak. "But, but! She IS the most skilled iryo-nin in the elemental nations! Plus that monstrous strength would do a really good job of keeping all those stupid hospital employees in line. She also had some great ideas for advancing the iryo-nin field, so I'm sure she'd be a great asset to Konoha!...Not counting her massive jugs of course," Jiraiya finished with a perverted grin and giggle. Naruto rolled his eyes at the pervert, having expected the last bit.

"What's the catch?" Naruto asked. Jiraiya flinched at the tone.

"Er, well she sort of hates Konoha for taking away her brother, lover, and Kushina away from her and would rather see Konoha burn than come back." Naruto glared at Jiraiya with an unreadable expression on his face, said face making Jiraiya extremely nervous the more seconds that passed. Jiraiya held his breath as Naruto took one in, preparing to speak.

"Alright." The toad sannin's jaw dropped at the blond godaime.

"What?" Naruto grinned at Jiraiya.

"I said alright. I'll go. I was planning to bring her back anyways, but it was fun watching you sweat." Naruto laughed when Jiraiya scowled at the blond, crossing his arms and turning away like a petulant child, pouting.

"Brat." The hokage only laughed harder at the sannin's muttered insult.

* * *

"Well what do you freaking know?!" Naruto shouted out in exasperation as he sat cross-legged on the bed. "As soon as we reach town he immediately goes off after some flirting broad! He even tried to take my money to pay for his perverted activities! The nerve!" The blond godaime shouted in indignation, Yamato sitting at the table in the center of the room, sweat-dropping.

"Why don't you just punish him by assigning him low rank missions, Hokage-sama?" Naruto crossed his arms as he frowned.

"Unfortunately, I can't do that since Jiraiya needs to focus on his networks right now more than ever and Konoha needs all the able bodied ninja hey can get for high rank missions in order to balance the output of money we've been using for reparation and renovation as well as showing the other villages that the invasion did nothing to weaken us." Yamato nodded at the logic, understanding and couldn't help but be amazed again at how well a twelve year old boy was running the village.

"Of course that doesn't mean I won't exact my revenge for this," Naruto added cynically, an evil smirk curling up his lips, "Ero-sennin won't even see it coming." Yamato shuddered at the smirk, recognizing it as one he wore when he planned to prank someone to their own personal hell.

Naruto sighed when there was a knock on the door. "Get that, would you Yamato?" The man nodded and went to answer the door, revealing the elder Uchiha in all his Akatsuki garbed glory, Kisame standing behind him in a trance. "What are you doing here so soon after I released you? Don't tell me that they already sent you after me again so quickly?" Naruto inquired.

Itachi nodded slowly, stepping in with Kisame following, as if he was sleepwalking. "As soon as we 'escaped' Konoha and told 'Leader-sama' of your location, he sent us to capture you as you came close to the area where we were wandering." The whiskered blond nodded in understanding.

"What illusion is Kisame under right now?" Yamato asked the pseudo-missing-nin. Itachi didn't even bother looking at the man as he answered, his sharingan resting squarely at the window.

"He is going to believe that Naruto is going to step out after being frightened by our KI before he requests to cut of his limbs. Sasuke is going to interrupt and attack me, acting as if he wishes to get revenge on me and after I knock him out using Tsukiyomi, Jiraiya will intervene and make us flee." Naruto gave a small smile at Itachi's explanation.

"It never ceases to amaze me how expertly you can use illusions." He knew that the sharingan definitely enhanced genjutsu, but he also knew that Itachi was skilled with it even without using his sharingan. Itachi nodded, acknowledging the compliment before brushing it aside for more important matters.

"I will be informing Akatsuki that you are planning on training with Jiraiya for 3 years, traveling around and getting stronger. Such information should keep them at bay, at least until you retrieve Tsunade-sama and return to Konoha and get publicly inaugurated. When that happens, I can always blame it on Jiraiya leaking false information in order to mislead us."

"Ho~? That sounds like a solid plan. Don't forget to put my famous introduction in that illusion of yours." Jiraiya said as he casually walked in. Itachi stayed silent at the input to his plan before finally opening his mouth partially to speak.

"...I'd rather not." He stated in all honesty. Jiraiya fell to the ground before he could sit down, making Yamato sweat-drop and Naruto laugh.

* * *

"What do you mean you already know the rasengan?" Jiraiya shouted more than asked. Naruto shrugged.

"I meant what I said. I already know the rasengan. I thought it was pretty self explanatory. I learned it about a week or two after Jiji gave me Chichiue's*** scroll on it. I've even started to have kage bunshin find a way to add an element to it, but I think it may be beyond possibility for the moment. I may have to wait until I get older to really develop it beyond the planning stages." Jiraiya looked thoughtful at that.

_'It took Minato three years to develop it and __me a month to master and it __this kid does it in less than two weeks...' _Jiraiya smiled then. _'The gaki's a little genius just like his father...no, maybe even better than his father, especially if he's already trying to figure out how to complete it.' _

"Then, what about the hiraishin?" Jiraiya asked more out of mild interest since he didn't think Naruto had made any headway with it, or even started working on it.

"I mastered it the morning I got appointed hokage...well rather, my clones did. I was kind of frozen in shock at being announced kage while my clones were jumping around and celebrating their success." Naruto stated, sounding almost sheepish, his hand scratching the back of his head. Jiraiya gaped at the whiskered blond, his jaw nearly reaching his waist, his eyes bulging as well.

"YOU ALREADY MASTERED THE HIRAISHIN?!"

* * *

*** Okay in case you didn't understand, the reason Naruto's stuck with the pointless civilian paperwork is because he had all the lazy chunin whose job it was to sort the paperwork punished by the T&I department, but don't worry the punishment itself was 'light' so they'll be back to work in a day or two...**

****For those of you wondering how Kakashi recovered so quickly. Well, in canon, Tsunade was the one to heal him when she returned. Since Naruto is capable of healing Lee, I didn't think it was a big leap for Naruto to give Kakashi a helping hand.**

*****Chichiue's just a really respectful term for father in Japanese.**


	18. Ch 18 From one Mission to Another

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto

* * *

Jiraiya was grumbling, lagging behind and sulking, looking dejectedly at the floor as he shuffled on. Yamato looked back at him, both exasperated and concerned. He knew that Naruto mastering the Hiraishin was shocking, anyone would be at finding out that knowledge, but why the hell was the sannin sulking? Naruto didn't spare the depressed toad sannin a glance, already knowing why Jiraiya was lagging behind, a sad smile on his lips.

_'He must be bummed that he couldn't teach his godson much of...well anything really. The only two things he could have possibly helped me with I've already learned.' _Kurama only scoffed.

_**'Who cares how that perverted idiot feels. It's his fault for abandoning you to those mindless sheep in Konoha you call villagers.'**_ Kurama stated harshly, not at all sympathetic.

_'Yeah, but I kind of feel bad. I mean, at least he's trying to make it up to me right?' _Kurama only rolled his eyes at his container.

_**'You are way too forgiving,**_** kit.' **Naruto mentally shrugged at that, not really knowing how to respond to that.

* * *

"Finally!" Naruto exclaimed in exasperation as he looked up at Tanzuka Castle. "Tsunade better be here dammit! I'm sick of looking for her at all the bars and gambling places!" Jiraiya gave the blond a funny look for that.

"Gaki, you've cleaned out every gambling house we've gone to and bought the most expensive sake out of every bar, despite your already impressive collection of both in Konoha. What the hell are you complaining about?!" The toad sannin shouted, both in exasperation and envy seeing as women threw themselves at the kid's feet when they saw his headband and gambling and drinking prowess. _Damn the kyuubi for making it impossible for him to get drunk..._ The pervert thought in envy. Yamato rubbed his aching temples, getting very tired of the two's continuous ridiculous arguments. He looked up at the crescent moon.

"Look, why don't we just get something to eat and then go find a hotel." Yamato suggested with strained patience. Naruto and Jiraiya just looked at him strangely before openly whispering to each other.

"What's his problem?" Naruto asked. Jiraiya shrugged and answered back.

"Maybe tree boy hasn't been drinking enough water or maybe he just hasn't gotten laid in a while." Now Naruto gave Jiraiya a strange look.

"Is that your solution to everything?" Naruto asked incredulously.

"Besides drinking? Yeah, pretty much." Yamato groaned and just decided to drag them to the nearest pub, dreaming about when he'd be able to bury his head beneath a pillow. Their bickering immediately ceased when Jiraiya spotted a familiar figure in the pub.

"Tsunade!" The obviously drunk woman with overly large breasts looked up at the trio in surprise, her assistant even more so.

"Jiraiya...Why are you at a place like this?" Naruto stared at the seemingly young woman._  
_

_I wonder what kind of genjutsu she's using to appear so young. From what I can tell it's not an average one or I would have been able to see through it already. _Naruto shrugged as his group joined the two for dinner.

"So why'd you come to see me?" She asked, getting straight to the point when they were all settled. Jiraiya looked serious as Naruto ate casually, Yamato tense with worry and caution.

"To tell you the truth...Konoha has issued a command that you returned to Konoha." Yamato's face hardened when the toad sannin said that, realizing how well Tsunade would take that, Naruto continuing to ignore the tense atmosphere in favor of his food. Jiraiya continued. "The third can no longer protect Konoha since he's missing an arm and leg." Tsunade's and her assistant's eyes widened at that.

"How did that happen?" The assistant asked incredulously.

"Orochimaru tried to invade the village and kill him, trying to destroy Konoha."

"What happened?!" Again the assistant.

"Sensei killed him with my and Sasuke Uchiha's help, but at the price of some of his limbs so Konoha-"

"Impossible. I decline." The three guys at the table stared at her in confusion.

"What? You didn't even let me finish!" Jiraiya protested.

"I already know what you're going to say. Sensei probably told you to come find me so I could become hokage right?" Naruto choked on whatever he was currently eating, looking at the woman like she were crazy.

"Say what now?!" Tsunade looked at Naruto then.

"Jiraiya, who is this kid? He seems worse than your previous apprentice, in terms of speech and intelligence..." She remarked coolly. Naruto's mouth formed a thin line as he bit back many childish retorts. Jiraiya only chuckled lightly.

"Well, it's tough for anyone to be compared to the yondaime because he was really talented, smart, reliable, and handsome like me too!" Naruto snorted, both at Jiraiya's response and being called Jiraiya's apprentice...though he did learn toad summoning from him, but that was it.

"But even the yondaime died quickly." Tsunade remarked. "He gave up his life for his village...Life is different from money. it can't be risked(gambled) that easily. Whoever puts it at risk so easily is a fool." She said with a smirk. Yamato stiffened at the insult to both the present and previous hokages, a little concerned of how silent Naruto was. Jiraiya as well was shifting nervously in his seat.

"My grandfather and granduncle both focused too much on bringing peace to our home, more than anything else, but as a result they just died in the middle of their dreams like losers...Being hokage is shit. No one but a fool would do it." Both Jiraiya and Yamato straightened when Naruto chuckled in the awkward silence that followed her statement.

"So this is what's left of the Senju legacy...how pathetic." Tsunade's eyes flared as she stood and slammed her hands against the table.

"What did you say to me brat?!" The slug princess flinched back in shock when the blond lifted his head to pierce her with a cold blue gaze.

"Granddaughter of the first hokage, grandniece of the second, and student of the third. I bet the shodaime and nidaime are rolling in their graves after hearing your ridiculous speech. I wonder how badly they'd beat you to the ground for spitting on the very foundation upon which they created the strongest village in the Elemental Nations." Naruto stood slowly, leaning over the table, his own hands flat against its surface as he got uncomfortably close to Tsunade who refused to back down to the brat, but was admittedly a little intimidated by the absolute cold fury he was giving off.

"Do you think that Dan and Nawaki would be proud of you Tsunade-hime? Do think they would appreciate you sullying their memories with your misguided spite?" She looked shocked and hurt at the mention of her two deceased precious people, but Naruto was beyond caring at this point.

"Oh yes, Jiraiya told me all about your understandable, but entirely juvenile reasons for hating Konoha. Suffering and mourning over the loss of those close to you, blindly hating the very village they died for out of spite and gambling and drinking away in order to try and escape the pain, acting as if you were the only one suffering from such losses, as if you are the only one who has lost a lover, a brother, or any other close friend or family, as if you no longer had anyone important enough to help you out of your grief and move on with your life. Imagine, a medic nin afraid of blood, so traumatized by her lover's death that rather than respectfully mourning and moving on, loathes everything he stood for and tried to protect. Tell me slug sannin, are you happy with yourself? Are you satisfied festering in your hate and pain, clinging onto your feeble excuses and misguided anger? How can you look at yourself in the mirror anymore without feeling disgusted with yourself or is that one of the reasons you continue to drink and gamble away your time? So that you don't have to come face to face with the truth, the truth that you've become nothing more than a pathetic, spiteful, weak-willed woman whose deceased family wouldn't even spare a glance were they still alive?" Jiraiya pulled the boy back as Tsunade began to cry, a horrified expression on her drunken face.

"Naruto, that's enough! I can't believe you're so cruel, that was entirely uncalled for!" Naruto turned his glare at Jiraiya.

"Uncalled for?! Stop joking Jiraiya! She just committed the worst crime against, not Konoha, but her own family, her precious people! How dare she sit around moping, pretending to be a victim, all the while blaming everything her precious people gave up their lives for! She's betrayed their memories by dis-acknowledging their dreams! I can't believe you haven't already fought with her about this! As far as I'm concerned she doesn't deserve the Senju name!"He turned back to the shell-shocked Tsunade.

"You don't deserve that necklace you wear around your neck!" He hissed at her before practically stalking out of the restaurant, slamming enough money on the table to pay for his own meal, along with a generous tip as a silent apology for the scene he caused.

* * *

_**'Uh, kit, I don't mean to sound hypocritical here, but don't you think that was kind of harsh?'**_Naruto's eyes widened visibly at the comment of the fox.

_'I'm sorry, what? I thought I heard the kyuubi no kitsune just call something I said to someone harsh.' _Kurama chuckled at Naruto's incredulity.

**_'Oh, don't get me wrong. I immensely enjoyed you tearing apart her defenses and mercilessly tearing apart her already broken spirit. I simply thought that it seemed rather cruel of you seeing as you tend to be more of a goody-two shoes than a merciless bijuu like myself,'_ **Kurama stated with a hint of pride. Naruto sighed as he let himself relax a little, running his hand through his hair.

_'I guess...I was a little too hard on her...Calling her reasons juvenile was rather untrue and uncalled for and maybe I went to far saying that her loved ones wouldn't even be able to look at her if they saw the state she was in now...they might have tried to help...' _Naruto's thoughts became less and less sure the more he thought about it. Kurama chuckled in amusement.

**_'Kit, I think you're actually having trouble feeling sorry for someone. Seriously, though? You sympathize with Zabuza whose nickname is the Demon of the Bloody Mist and who killed nearly his entire class and tried to take over his village. You sympathize with Itachi who killed his entire clan save his younger brother, but tortured harshly. You sympathize with Jiraiya and Hiruzen, two men who could have prevented your life from being a living hell and you even sympathize with your bastard father Minato despite him being the key reason you were despised in the first place, yet when it comes to this woman, you can find absolutely no reason to feel any sympathy for her?'_ **Kurama finished, incredulity in his voice. _**'Your logic is infallible.'** _Naruto grunted and crossed his legs and arms as he sat on the bed of the hotel room he'd rented.

_'Hey, Zabuza had no choice but to kill his classmates, it was the village laws, something he tried to change by overthrowing the previous mizukage. Itachi was ordered to kill his clan by the council and he only hurt Sasuke in order to give him a reason to live. Jiji tried his hardest under the circumstances to keep me safe and at least Jiraiya is trying to make it up to me now!' _

**_'Gah! See! THAT RIGHT THERE! That's exactly what I'm talking about! You sympathize with all those assholes, but just Tsunade is unforgivable?'_**Naruto sighed and grudgingly saw his point.

_'...well I guess it's understandable that she's bitter towards Konoha since her family and lover died protecting it...but I said that when I chewed her out! And she's had YEARS to reconcile herself with their deaths! That's what makes me so angry! Jiji and Ero-sannin both went way too easy on her. It's no wonder she became such a pathetic, bitter drunken old hag!' _Naruto fumed silently. _'Why are you even bothering to try and make me sympathize?!' _Kurama stayed eerily silent before he suddenly burst into boisterous laughter.

_**'GYAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! OH MAN THAT WAS PRICELESS!'**_Naruto waited patiently for him to finish, though he was still a little pissed, his confusion was beginning to make it fade. _**'Kit, I never said I disagreed with you. In fact, I'm with you 100% on this, but it was funny watching you try and reason it out only to get mad about it the more you thought on it.'**_Naruto frowned, his brow twitching in annoyance.

_'So basically you were just messing with me.' _He thought blandly.

_**'Yeah, pretty much.'**_Before Naruto could retort, Jiraiya and Yamato walked in. Naruto looked at the two in confusion as Yamato looked shell-shocked while Jiraiya just looked thoughtful. Before he could ask what was going on, Yamato snapped out of his daze and immediately went to Naruto, shaking him as he spoke.

"How do you do it?!" Naruto's eyes became swirls as he tried to regain focus.

"Do what?"

"How do you constantly manage to do such ridiculous things!" Naruto finally managed to get Yamato to stop and shoved him off, looking to Jiraiya.

"What the hell is he talking about?!" Naruto shouted in confusion. Jiraiya just sighed as Yamato kneeled on the floor muttering to himself darkly.

"Well after you left Tsunade there completely broken, I started trying to pick up the pieces, telling her who you were and your past, trying to explain to her why you reacted like that and she eventually stopped crying and actually looked better than she had in years. She even smiled when she heard you were hokage. Said that she'd go back with us to Konoha to become the head of the hospital. I was skeptical of course so I tested her resolve by cutting my palm and letting it bleed. All she did was hit me over the head for my stupidity before healing it and going off to pack." Naruto looked utterly lost at that.

"How does me verbally tearing her down lead to her completely changing her mind and coming back tot he place she proclaimed she hated just yesterday?" Yamato chose this time to recover and stood, pointing an accusing finger at the blond.

"That's exactly my point! You yell at one of the strongest kunoichi in history and rather than beat you bloody, she does what you want! That's just not fair. You have Kami's favor! You have to have it! How else would you explain all the crazy situations that end up in your favor?!" Naruto actually thought on it, the room silent as they waited for his answer.

"...the devil's luck?" Naruto answered in a question. The two men sweat dropped at their young blond hokage while Kurama was laughing his ass off inside the seal.

* * *

Naruto stopped mid yawn when Tsunade called his attention.

"Hey, brat!" Naruto growled and turned to retort only for her to surprise him by taking off his headband and kissing his forehead, putting her necklace on around his neck. Naruto stood there, staring at Tsunade's warm smile in shock. "Thank you...for helping me remember..." Naruto stood there stunned as she walked past him, only snapping out of it when Jiraiya lightly smacked the back of his head with a fist.

"Lucky brat got a kiss from the beautiful Tsunade-hime." Naruto flushed slightly in embarrassment and started to walk with him. "So..." Naruto turned to him quizzically, getting a bad feeling when he grinned pervertedly, his cheeks reddening. "Did you get a good look at her jugs when she leaned down." Naruto gave him a dead stare before suddenly punching him to the ground, the ground itself cracking from the force. Naruto turned away with a scowl.

"Tch! Damn Ero-sannin," Naruto grumbled to himself as he and Yamato followed Tsunade out of the town, Yamato looking back in concern, wondering if the toad sannin would wake up anytime soon.

_'Though he did kind of deserve that...' _Yamato thought to himself as he faced forward again.

* * *

(Back to Konoha some time later)

Naruto startled awake when he heard the door open, yawning and wiping away the sleep tears as Kotetsu and Izumo walked in with the giant piles of paperwork he forced on them.

"Oh, Kotetsu, Izumo...thanks for the hard work."

"Yeah we got it finished- HEY WAIT! WERE YOU JUST SLEEPING?!" Kotetsu shouted in accusation. Naruto just yawned again and leaned back in his chair, resting his feet on the desk, his arms behind his head.

"Maybe I was, maybe I wasn't. Why? Would that be a problem?" The whiskered blond asked with a lazy smirk. Kotetsu humorously grit his teeth at the hokage while Izumo just tried to calm his partner down.

"Relax, Kotetsu. You know you're not going to win this. Besides the fact that Naruto's the Hokage now, he was always a tricky bastard so it's not like anythings changed." Kotetsu just grumbled as he put down the paperwork for Naruto's shadow clones to sort through and stamp.

"Damn cheater." Kotetsu mumbled to himself. Naruto just grinned at the two, waving goodbye to them cheekily as they left again, his shadow clone handing him a scroll a few minutes after they left. Naruto grinned as he read the contents of the letter.

"Well, this should be interesting."

* * *

_"We will not be able to go anywhere. There is no route from here."_

_"The journey was hopeless."_

_"We can only go this far. Let's give up."_

_"There is a way. let's believe in it. We will surely be able to find it."_

_"But, Princess-"_

_"Don't give up!"_

_"Princess..." Evil laughter echoed through the sky._

_"Princess Fuun! You bastards will not be able to go any further than this."_

_"Mao!"_

_"You bastard! Don't tell me that you're the one that caused this storm!" The villain laughed, a fallen samurai rising behind the princess, its eyes glowing a blood red. The princess twirled effortlessly out of the way, taking her sword out and disposing of the creature effortlessly. The heroic group turned to see more of the fallen warriors rising from the battle ground._

_"You should give up. You should beg for forgiveness, Princess Fuun."_

_"I will never give up." The villain frowned. "As long as I live, I will turn everything that I have into strength, and I will show you that I can cut a way open!" The princess began to radiate a rainbow aura about her._

_"The princess is..."_

_"The seven color chakra is burning."_

_"Let's go! We shall also burn our chakra!"_

_"Yes!"_

_"Alright!" The villain began to flashily spin his staff, causing debris to fly into the air a whirlwind forming around him. He sent a stream of black energy towards the heroic group, only to be thwarted by the princesses' seven color chakra, the fallen warriors being destroyed by the force of it. _

_The princess let out a mighty cry and thrust her sword forth, a stream of her seven colored chakra heading straight for the villain, sending him up to the grey skies above. The clouds dispersed, revealing a blue sky and a beautiful rainbow as if to signal their victory._

* * *

Sasuke sighed as he watched the end of the movie. _'It's almost scary how similar this Princess Fuun character is to Naruto...' _He turned to said blond, minor annoyance on his face. "Care to explain why you dragged Hinata, Sai, and I here and made us watch this movie? Aren't you supposed to be in your office doing paperwork?" The whiskered hokage pouted at the Uchiha.

"Aw come on, you're no fun, Otouto, and here I wanted to spend some quality time with my team."

"Hey!" The four turned to the theater man, his image upside down since they were sitting on the ceiling. "What are you doing up there?!" Sasuke clicked his tongue in annoyance.

"Tch, what do you want?"

"What do you mean what do I want?! Sneaking in and watching the movie for free is completely unethical!" Sai tilted his head in confusion.

"I thought that being hok-" Naruto slapped a hand over Sai's mouth, not wanting the villagers to know that he was hokage yet.

"We weren't just watching the movie, we were training at the same time." Naruto explained politely.

"Training?" He asked skeptically. They all jumped down expertly.

"Our tickets are right here," Hinata explained, displaying them almost flauntingly. He examined them, again skeptically.

"You guys are Konoha ninja?"

"I would assume so from the headbands we are all wearing," Sai replied almost sarcastically, though Naruto and the others didn't think he even knew what sarcasm was.

_"Well let's go...beyond that rainbow!"_

* * *

Yamato groaned as the rest of team 7 idled around the back lot of the theater, Naruto staring at the Princess Fuun movie poster in contemplation.

"I can't believe Kakashi is so late. He's usually no this bad." Sasuke didn't even glance in his direction as he sat languidly on the stacked pipes, brooding like usual.

"He always does this. You'd think being his kouhai, you'd be used to it by now."

"The movie was really good though." Naruto smiled.

"At least there's that." Naruto muttered with a smile.

"I wonder if there are any princesses like Princess Fuun in real life? Many ninja would be satisfied to fight for a princess like that...or at least ninja from Konoha." Sai questioned. Sasuke just scoffed.

"What nonsense. it's just a story from a movie." Sasuke replied callously, still unhappy with Sai joining the team. _'Though Naruto is basically the male version of that character...and he's technically a prince in terms of his mother's home village.' _The team immediately tensed when they heard the approaching sound of a full on galloping horse. The team stared in shock when the actress for Princess Fuun suddenly jumped over the wooden fence on a horse, Naruto hiding a smirk as the princess galloped off into the alleyways.

"No way, Princess Fuun?!" Yamato exclaimed. The five jumped out of the way when the gate opened to reveal a group of armored men quickly chasing after her. Three of them immediately chased after them, Naruto and Yamato lagging behind.

Naruto waited until they were out of sight before stopping completely.

"Hokage-sama, is it really alright to not tell them of the situation?" He asked, but Naruto just grinned.

"Nah, they'll figure it out soon enough. Besides they need to work on their teamwork.

* * *

"My, my." Sai, Sasuke, and Hinata all looked up to see Kakashi perched on a post as they finished tying up the armored men.

"Kakashi-sensei!" Hinata called.

"What are you guys doing?" he asked his students.

"Just wasting time." Sasuke replied as he brushed his hands off. Kakashi only shunshined in front of the man with glasses that seemed to be in charge, cutting everyone's bindings as he went and helping the man up. Kakashi eye-smiled at the man and put a sheepish hand behind his head.

"Er, I'm sorry." he turned to his students. "This person is the client for our mission."

* * *

"Ah! it's Princess Fuun!" Naruto's clone was relieved that the children weren't hurt, getting over their scare rather quickly when they recognized the rider that almost trampled them. _'Maybe it wasn't such a good idea to annoy her to the point of trying to run away from me...' _

"Wow! Great! it's really Princess Fuun!"

Ninja clash in the land of snow/ch.191

"I am not Princess Fuun," she replied coolly.

"I know, you are the actress Fujikaze Yukie. I'm a fan of yours!" The kids started to dig into their bags, taking out paper and writing utensils.

"Please sign!"

"Me too!" They all started clamoring. The shadow clone frowned from the shadows when she glared at them.

"I don't give autographs or anything like that."

"Please don't say that, please?" They continued to ask. _'Kids are pretty resilient aren't they?' _The clone thought with amusement. "Since you're an actress, please at least give me an autograph.

"Cut it out!" She yelled at them, shutting them up completely. "What's so fun about getting my autograph?" She put her hand on her hip. "Sooner or later, you will put it away somewhere and then it'll collect dust! It doesn't serve a purpose and it's useless. It's so stupid." She pushed past them and ran off, leaving the kids disheartened. Naruto frowned at the scene.

_'Boss isn't going to be happy with this woman's attitude...' _He thought before he dispelled himself.

* * *

"Our mission is to protect the actress that plays Princess Fuun, Fujikaze Yukie, who's known for her role as Princess Gale."

"Guard?" Sasuke asked.

"Well, maybe not so much 'guard' as 'escort'." He replied.

"The next Princess Gale movie is our first filmed abroad." One of the script writer's said. "And well, you've seen what the most important person that Yukie Fujikaze, is like."

"I'm very sorry," her manager apologized.

"Still, Konoha ninja are impressive," the director complimented. "They easily beat back the men we hired to be her bodyguards and stuntmen." Kakashi sighed at the reminder.

"Err...thank you very much." Naruto was distracted with the photos posted on the wall next to his seat when he saw something interesting.

"That's an impressive precipice..." Naruto muttered mostly to himself, but obviously someone heard him.

"That's the 'Rainbow Glacier' which is supposed to be found in the Land of Snow." The blond turned over to one of the main supporting actors.

"Ah, Ken right? You play Burikinto?" His friend continued for him.

"The climactic last scene of the next movie will be filmed there."

"And Hidero who plays Shishimaru," Sai commented.

"The Land of Snow is awfully far to go," Sasuke remarked dryly, not liking that it was such a distance away.

"The manager, Sandayu, here recommended it. The Rainbow Glacier turns into seven colors during the spring."

"But that's just an old legend," Kakashi interrupted. "In reality, there is no spring in the Land of Snow."

"No spring?" Sasuke asked.

"So it's winter all year long?" Hinata questioned after him.

"Yeah, just that."

"Kakashi, was it?" Everyone turned to the director. "I heard...that you've been to the Land of Snow." The silver haired jonin's eyes closed at that.

"That was a long time ago..."

"And I hear that the Land of Snow is a very poor country." Naruto turned to see another actor giving him a smile reminiscent of the ones Gai does, if only because when he smiled there was that sparkle that creeped him out.

_'I thought Gai used a genjutsu in order to make his teeth sparkle like that and this guy has an average civilian's chakra levels so he can't be using one...are you telling me that creepy sparkling smile is all natural?!' _The whiskered blond shuddered at the thought.

"Michy who plays Sukeakuro." Sai stated factually. The whiskered blond gave his near emotionless teammate a dry look.

"Thank you, Sai, that was very informative." Sai only gave him that creepy fake smile, making Naruto sigh in exasperation and Sasuke scoff.

"The story goes that the former lord was a fanatic for gadgets...and he squandered the clan's fortune on silly amusements."

"Hey, I hope that place has heaters at least." Hidero commented. "I hate going to cold places.

"Then will you run away, too?" Ken asked. "Like Yukie."

"Hey, give me a break!" The screen writer asked.

"Is Yukie...always like this?" Hinata questioned with worry. The actors all shared a look.

"Hmm...well, yes." One answered frankly.

"She really doesn't know the meaning of the words like 'endeavor' or 'aspiration.'

"But she was never one to ignore her work." All turned to the director again. "I don't know or care about her personal life. I have no complaints as long as she performs to the best of her ability in front of the cameras. She was born an actress." He stated quietly with conviction.

"That's right, it's only since we told her we were going to the Land of Snow...that she started running off like that." Team 7 sans Kakashi, Yamato, and Naruto all shared a glance at that bit of info, Naruto doing his hardest to keep a poker face.

* * *

"As much fun as it is chasing a civilian through alleyways that I know better than the back of my hand and finding you in bars that I frequent...and listening to you ramble about how horrible it is being you...I think you're manager is looking for you." As if on que, Sandayu burst through the doors and ran up to her.

"Yukie-sama! The boat for the Land of Snow will soon set sail." Sai, Hinata, and Sasuke walked in at a more leisurely pace. "You must hurry!"

"Forget it." Naruto cast a discreet glance at Kakashi when he walked in with Yamato.

"Huh?"

"I'm dropping out as Princess Gale."

"What?! What are you saying?!" Her manager shouted.

"So what? It happens often. You know, the lead actress changes for sequels. The director changes-"

"Enough of that!" The manager interrupted. "This role...the one as Princess Gale...you are the only actress who can play her!" Naruto had ordered his own sake and was sipping at his cup as he watched the scene play out.

_'The manager is way too serious about this role...it's way too obvious that there's more going on.' _

_**'I bet even your dysfunctional team has realized that by now.'**_Kurama remarked idly.

_'Hey! We are not dysfunctional!' _Naruto denied vehemently.

"Besides, if we drop out at this stage...you'll never be able to find work in this industry again!"

_**'Oh please, you have the abandoned plant boy experiment of Orochimaru's, your father's student who has emotional issues because of his two old teammates, a broody Uchiha baby who was obsessed with revenge at one point, a **_**shy _Hyuga who has beef with the main branch, and an emotionally stunted dick who can't tell the difference between an insult and a compliment.'_ **

"So? I don't care." Yukie replied. Naruto frowned at what Kurama had said, unable to come back with a response.

"Yukie-sama..." Naruto gave Kakashi a look saying 'if you don't do something, I will' and Kakashi sighed silently and went up to the woman.

"I guess it can't be helped." Yukie turned around when she heard him approach, just in time to see him lift his headband and put her to sleep using his sharingan. He caught her before she could fall.

_**'Hey! If she doesn't want to keep being an actress or become the princess of her country, she could always become a professional whore. She has the body for it and she's certainly bitchy and bitter enough to be one. She could definitely rake in the cash without even trying. I bet that toad sannin would be one of her biggest patrons!'**_Naruto sighed as he tried to ignore his unwanted secondary inner monologue.

_'This is going to be a long trip...' _

* * *

AN: I skipped three of my classes Monday...and my last class today...Don't skip class people, it could get you dropped and you can't get a refund after the first week or two...(in college) not that that happened to me, don't worry(if you did at all)...at least I was productive in my poor decision making. I managed to pump out this chapter though it took longer than I anticipated considering my internet at home is going AWOL and I had to start watching the first Naruto movie at the library while pausing every few seconds for the dialogue since I can't find a proper movie script or something anywhere that's also in English. Of course that means that the next chapter is going to take quite a while because of all these little setbacks, so sorry ahead of time. It actually took me a little by surprise when I reached the appropriate timeline for the first movie to take place. Technically I could have also done it before the Tsunade retrieval arc, but I filled those chapters with the whole 'Naruto becomes hokage' thing, but after the ^, I kinda had to. It's a nice canon/non-canon filler for replacing the Sasuke retrieval arc considering I'm not doing that as both Orochimaru and his minions are taken care of...well mostly, but that story's for later on. Sorry, I rambled. Like always, please feel free to review and thanks for reading. Till next chapter(=v=)


	19. Ch 19 The Princess of Snow Country

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto

* * *

"This is an important mission, team." Yamato only sweat-dropped when the others simply idled around on the ship, bored but careful to stay out of the way of the movie crew.

"Mission?" Sasuke asked with a raised brow. His team never really considered escort duties missions unless they were at least A-rank.

"Yes, this is an important A-rank mission." Sasuke's eyes widened a little at that, looking to his first one-eyed sensei and seeing that he hadn't looked away from his book.

"I don't see how guarding one actress is going to be that difficult." Sai stated with that creepy smile.

"That's not true, Sai." Kakashi finally looked up from his book to look at Sai. "Famous people are often targeted. Furthermore, it's difficult to know who the enemy is. So be extremely careful," he drawled before returning his gaze to his book. Naruto tried to contain his laughter, his face revealing nothing, as he was again constantly amused by the fact that Sasuke, Hinata, and Sai had no idea who they were really guarding.

"Er, Naruto. I don't mean to sound rude or anything, but...shouldn't you be in Konoha...I don't know, doing hokage things?" Hinata asked timidly. Naruto just scoffed.

"Please, A blood clone fixed that easy. All I really do is paperwork and clones can take care of that. If Konoha really needs me then one of the clones was instructed to throw a hiraishin kunai. It'd take quite a large amount of chakra to transport me, but besides having a lot of that, I'm quick to recover. Besides, there was no way that I was going to contend myself with not going on missions anymore. I live for action!" Sasuke scoffed.

"More like you wanted to keep avoiding your public inauguration." Naruto twitched at that and laughed nervously.

"That may have been part of the reason, but hey I kind of needed to get away from Konoha for a little while anyways. A lot has happened in such a short time and I need something _not_ related to what I'm doing to get away for a little bit."

"So you're going on an A-rank mission to relieve stress?" Yamato asked incredulously. Naruto simply shrugged.

"I guess." Sasuke gave his aniue a strange look.

"Most ninja don't go on high ranking missions to 'relieve stress'." Sasuke stated blandly. Naruto shrugged again.

"I never said I was most ninja." The team became distracted when they saw Koyuki begin to act.

"She's an amazing actress..." Hinata murmured in awe at the compelling scene. of course the moment was ruined when she called for them to stop in order to use eye drops so she could cry.

"I would say she is like me, but she has emotions...they are simply all bitter." Team 7 looked at Sai and sweat-dropped.

* * *

"What is this?" The director muttered out as he stared at the huge obstacle in their way.

"When I woke up this morning, our path was blocked!" The screenwriter cried out. "What'll we do?" The director only gave a sharp glare at the obstacle.

"This is it! This movie is gonna change everything!"

"Huh?" The screenwriter was obviously lost. The director turned to him sharply, raising a fist.

"Fool! Look at this perfect location!" He motioned to the glacier. "How can we _not_ shoot here?!" He exclaimed.

"Huh? HUH?!"

"When things like this happen, we say 'the Movie God has descended!'" He explained passionately. He pointed grandly at his crew. "Everyone, prepare to disembark!"

"Movies have their own god?" Naruto staged whispered to Sasuke who only gave a noncommittal shrug.

* * *

Team 7 immediately leapt into action when an unplanned explosion went off during filming. Kakashi went to stand protectively in front of the client, the director yelling at him.

"What are you doing?!" The director yelled.

"All of you get back!" He barked, ignoring the director.

"Welcome to the Land of Snow." Naruto squinted at the strangely dressed ninja that had popped out of the snow, throwing off a sheet. They wore strange light blue jumpsuits with varying pieces of grey armor, but they all wore the same village headband. Kakashi's eyes widened slightly in recognition.

"You are-" his head jerked to a nearby peak, meeting with the lone figure of a pink haired woman with a strange cap on her head.

"Welcome, Princess Koyuki." Her tone was confident and condescending. "You did bring the Hex Crystal, didn't you?" Kakashi's eyes sharpened at the mention of the crystal. Yamato turned sharply on his heel in time to see a huskier man with dull purple hair come out of the snow, chuckling.

"I've gotta hand it to you, Kakashi Hatake... We couldn't get any closer than this." Naruto scoffed.

"Yeah because he's the one that set up the traps and sensed you first," he muttered.

"Sasuke, Sai, Sakura, get ready to fight. Tenzo, Naruto, protect Yukie." Naruto frowned. "Everyone get back to the ship!" He told the crew.

"I told you to call me Yamato!" Yamato shouted, glaring at his senpai.

"Really? Guard the client? As if one of us wasn't enough?" He complained. Yamato just spared him a short glance.

"Well, you are the hokage...Hokage-sama. We need to protect you as much as we need to protect her." The whiskered blond only rolled his eyes.

"Because I'm the one that _needs _protecting." Yamato could say nothing more as the enemies continued speaking.

"Fubuki, Mizore...get Princess Koyuki," the one with the high lavender ponytail demanded. Kakashi was quick to engage the apparent leader of the trio. "It's been a while, Kakashi. Not running away? Like last time?" The jonin just glared at the man.

"Nadare Roga." As if that was a signal, the two leapt at each other, going straight into a taijutsu battle. Naruto turned his attention to the husky man as he took out a flat metal object and dropped it, using it to glide quickly towards his waiting opponent who was only smirking in anticipation.

"Does battle excite you, Uchiha?" Sai questioned, standing next to him. "Tell me, in bed are you a sadist or a masochist?" Sasuke flushed in anger at Sai's antagonizing and leapt away to dodge, glaring harshly at his new teammate.

"Unless you want to die with our enemy I suggest you shut the hell up you emotionless prick!" The two again dodged the man as he glided by again, getting a little angered that he was being ignored.

"Is that the best you can come up with dickless?" Was Sai's only reply. Sasuke only growled in anger and frustration throwing a round of kunai at the enemy, only for it to bounce off of some invisible barrier harmlessly. Sai took out a large shuriken and tossed it expertly to follow up, but the weapon shattered on contact with the man's armor.

"Ice style: Tsubame Blizzard!" Naruto's head snapped to the woman Hinata was facing, eyes wide as he saw a move he thought only Haku could do. _'She can't possibly be from the Yuki clan could she? I thought Haku was the last...' _Hinata skillfully dodged the flying ice bird projectiles, her byakugan activated as she turned to the returning weapons.

"Eight Trigrams: Vacuum Palm!" She shouted, a wave of chakra shooting from her palms and destroying the oncoming projectiles. This was followed by an attack from Sasuke on their other opponent.

"Fire Style: Fireball Jutsu!" His attack seemed to again bounce off some barrier they couldn't see.

"Great job, dickless. Looks like you may have singed his hair a little," Sai patronized with that eerie smile of his. Sasuke practically hissed at him. Naruto turned back to the crew when he heard a gasp of shock.

"Everyone head back to the ship already!" The started and all began running back...except for Koyuki.

"Yukie-san!" Yamato shouted, trying to snap her out of her daze.

"Princess!" Her manager came running back to her. Koyuki turned to him slowly, still looking out of it.

"Sandayu...you...?" She was interrupted when the Hinata's opponent attacked again.

"Ice Prison Jutsu!" Hinata leapt back continuously as mounds of ice erupted from the ground, trying to hit their target.

"Gentle Step: Lion Fist!" Hinata shouted, a single chakra made lion forming around her fist as she lunged at the opponent, only for her to raise a wall of ice effectively blocking the attack...but not completely. Hinata's move proved more powerful than the opponent had thought and had shattered the ice, but by then the lion had dissipated.

"Ninja art: Super Beasts Scroll," Sai intoned as he quickly and skillfully drew a small group of lions on a scroll, sending them off the page to attack their opponent...not that it did much good seeing as the barrier came into effect. Sasuke smirked condescendingly at his teammate.

"Good going, Sai. I think maybe you got some ink on his clothes." Sai just sniffed at the Uchiha.

"Not like you could do any better, dickless." Sasuke's hackles rose and he shot a jet of orange flames at the enemy, using no hand signs and not calling out the name, though it did him little good as it was blocked again by that damned shield protecting him. It was then that Koyuki fell to her knees, making Sandayu fluster about her.

"Princess!" Momentarily distracted by the state of the client, Sai was taken off guard by the opponent who had jumped off his board to attack. Sai dodged the first three strikes but was punched harshly in the gut, grunting in pain as he was tossed back by the stronger-than-it-should-have-been punch, crying out in pain when he was forcefully plowed through hard ice.

"Sai!" The Uchiha shouted, slightly worried about his new teammate...though he'd never admit it. He turned angrily towards the opponent, flashing through hand signs. "Water release: Water Dragon!" Sasuke scowled as he felt the chakra the move depleted from him, scowling further when he remembered how much of a pain it was to learn since the element did not mesh well with his prominent fire affinity, but he smirked in satisfaction when he saw his hard work pay off and blow away the opponent.

Naruto turned to the escaping movie workers, absolutely amazed to see them still filming. He could hear the director barking out an insane order. "Sacrifice your lives and keep on shooting!"

_How do they work for this man? _Naruto thought.

Sai recovered himself and returned to Sasuke, back to back as they now didn't know where their opponent was. "I wonder if your attack did anything with that strange armor of his."

"That's chakra armor invented specially for the ninja from the Land of Snow." Kakashi explained as he joined them.

"Chakra armor? And what happened to your opponent?" Sasuke questioned his sensei.

"it's far more effective than before," was Kakashi's only response.

"So you remember?" Roga entered their conversation. "This armor increases the chakra within one's own body and strengthens various jutsu. A chakra barrier is created around one's body and deflects your chakra... creating an anti-chakra. Ninjutsu or genjutsu...they're all useless!" Team 7 glared at the smug man. Roga flashed through signals and attacked. "Ice Style: Piercing Dragon, Fierce Tiger!" Kakashi didn't even use hand signs as he called a retaliating move immediately.

"Water Style: Water Dragon Missile!" Kakashi, Sai, and Sasuke had to jump away to dodge the ice tiger when the water dragon was quickly destroyed. The bulky enemy started to slide down to Naruto and the frozen Koyuki, stretching out his arm as if preparing to attack and vaguely reminding Naruto of Zoku's arms from the Chunin exams. Of course instead of sound waves, a bunch of rope shot out like a spider's web to try and catch Koyuki, but of course Naruto was there to cut it before it even reached the princess.

"Get out of the way, you brat!" The bulky man shouted. Naruto was getting excited about the impending clash...only to be disappointed when Yamato got in the way, tackling the man aside and engaging the enemy himself.

"Oh come on! Can't I get in a little fighting?!" Naruto complained aloud as Yamato got to look all cool by stopping the guy's punches casually with his hands, the enemy clearly struggling to even make him budge.

Sasuke was now dodging ice attacks, his ankle finally caught until he was consumed in the ice. The woman smirked, thinking she'd gotten victory, only for her to scowl when Sasuke's image faded into a heater with an explosion tag on it. Two kunai with wires attacked wires flew out from the smoke to wrap around the woman and the iceberg she'd created in front of her. She was flattened face first into the cold block and the fire travelling quickly along the wires promised a painful demise, but she escaped by activating some strange wing-like contraption that was strapped to her back, breaking the wire holding her and allowing her to glide to safety. Sasuke frowned at the figure in the sky, giving her a cold glare.

"Why are you glaring? It's not like she can see you," Sai commented unnecessarily, making Sasuke turn a much fiercer glare at him.

Naruto having had enough of protecting the potato, turned to her. "Yukie-san. Please hurry to the ship. You're an easy target out in the open." He frowned when he noticed her shivering, her eyes showing she was obviously elsewhere. _Don't tell me she has some kind of phobia like Baa-san used to..._

"Princess!" Sandayuu shouted at her. Naruto knew that getting angry wouldn't help anything, but it did make him feel a little better. He glared at the woman.

"What are you doing? Hurry up and go!" His team was fighting this enemy to protect her and she was making little to no effort to make things easier for her.

"Princess, let's hurry back to the ship." Sandayuu urged her.

"No."

"We must hurry, or your life will be-" Sandayuu attempted again, only to be interrupted.

"I don't care if I die!" She shouted, her eyes wide and wild looking. "I'm not going!" She grabbed her head with both hands, shutting her eyes tightly. "I'm not going to Snow Country!" I growled at her.

"Quit being so selfish!" Naruto shouted at her, walking over to prepare to take her back by force when she suddenly fainted.

"Princess!" Sandayuu shouted in concern. Kakashi noticed and ran over, forgetting his fight.

"I told you that you are my opponent!" Roga yelled. "Ice style: One horned White Whale!" He flashed through hand signs and the ice beneath Kakashi began to crack and shift, a giant horned whale of ice erupting from the ground and breaking off a large chunk of the iceberg they were all on. Kakashi landed safely, much to no one's surprise.

"I see, that's quite a powerful jutsu." Naruto's eyes widened slightly when he noticed Kakashi's sharingan was exposed.

"Well that's not good," he muttered under his breath. "Sasuke, Sai, Hinata, Yamato! Gather everyone and run!" He shouted, knowing what Kakashi was planning. They all nodded and made their way back to the ship while Naruto grabbed the princess and Sandayuu and Kakashi perfectly mimicked Roga's last attack.

"Ice style: One horned White Whale!"

"As usual, you copied it," was Roga's reply. "You can't beat me with the same jutsu." He again produced the same jutsu, not needing to call out the name.

"Beat you?" Kakashi asked casually. "I'm sorry, but I won't meet your expectations." Roga's eyes widened in shock when Kakashi's jutsu shoved his own into the iceberg between the two, causing the entire thing to break and fall apart. Naruto watched from the relative safety of the ship, the waves wild as the sea was disturbed by the large scale battle.

"Cut!" The director somehow shouted over the storm of waves and sound happening at the moment, thrusting his red cone forward in emphasis.

"Wow, we just filmed a great movie..." the script writer murmured to himself, kneeling next to the director and looking between the wooden railing.

* * *

Team 7 settled comfortably in a room after they finally reached the harbor, Sandayuu, the director, and the scriptwriter with them.

"Sandayuu-san, you knew about this, right?" Kakashi asked.

"Yes."

"You must have known how she would react if she were to return here."

"This was the only way that I could bring the princess back to this country." Sandayuu told Kakashi solemnly. Sasuke crossed his arms as he leaned back in the chair.

"Sandayuu, why are you speaking as if Yukie is a real princess?" He asked though Naruto was the one who replied.

"She is a real princess." Hinata's eyes widened at that and Sasuke's frown grew more prominent.

"Fujikaze Yukie is a fake name," Kakashi started. "She is really Kazahana Koyuki, the heiress of the Snow Country." Hinata gasped in surprise while Sasuke only scowled.

"The last time I was with her, she was very young." Sandayuu said. "It's not surprising that she does not remember me."

"So you're also from Snow Country?" Hinata asked softly.

"Yes, that's right. I used to serve at the side of this country's previous king, Kazahana Sousetsu-sama. The Snow Country was a small, but peaceful country. Sousetsu-sama loved the princess very much and they lived a very peaceful life."

_I don't like where this is going..._ Naruto thought with a frown. _It's always the worst scenarios that start out so peacefully..._

"But ten years ago, that incident... Sousetsu-sama's younger brother Dotou hired some ninja, revolted, and took over this country. He burnt the beautiful Kazahana Castle, and we thought that we'd lost the princess." It was then kakashi stepped in to tell them about his mission to save her.

"I couldn't win against them at that time. I had to run away. I had no choice but to run away..."

"I found the princess when she was on stage. I was overjoyed...at how she...how she managed to survive." He started to cry with that joy only for his crying to be interrupted.

"It would have been better if I died." Everyone turned to see Koyuki leaning against the open door. Naruto glared at her while Sandayuu kept crying.

"Please don't say that. To us, the fact that you are still alive is our hope!"

"Even if I am still alive, my heart is already dead." She replied coolly.

**_What is this pathetic meatbag yammering about. if her heart was dead she wouldn't be standing there! How stupid can your species be sometimes?!_ **Naruto almost fell off his chair at Kurama's sudden commentary.

_Er...I think you're missing the point._

"Ever since that incident, my tears have dried up." She finished.

_**What point? That's she's an angsty, pathetic selfish bitch who's letting hr country fall to ruin because she still hasn't gotten over her daddy's death? At least Sasuke had a drive, to get revenge on the one who killed his family. This bitch has nothing but her own selfishness and self-pity. She's almost worse than that busty fleshbag Tsunade!**_Kurama ranted, leaving Naruto speechless...in thought.

Sandayuu dried his tears with a cloth. "After the incident, I somehow managed to become Fujikaze Yukie's manager and I waited until I finally got the chance to bring the princess back to this country."

"Eh? So all this time, you were using us?" The scriptwriter shouted.

"No. Well...I apologize for fooling all of you, but this is for the Snow Country." Sandayuu said meekly to them before standing and moving towards Koyuki.

_**Wow, they should be shocked that a man put his country before showbiz. I mean who in their right mind would want to see their village return to peace?**_

Sandayuu bowed at Koyuki's feet. "Princess Koyuki! You must overthrow Dotou and be our new queen!" He lowered his head to the floor. "I, Sandayuu, will protect you with my life! So please fight with us!" He pleaded. Naruto's glare intensified at Koyuki's unfazed and apathetic stare, looking down at him as if he were insignificant.

"No." It was an absolute refusal.

Sandayuu looked up in shock. "Huh?"

"Don't joke with me," she said harshly.

"But the people of Snow Country..." She turned her face away from him, her eyes closed.

"That's none of my business. I refuse," she said bluntly.

"Princess..." Sandayuu looked up at her desperately, sadly. Koyuki turned back to glare at him.

"Give it up already! Are you stupid? No matter how hard you try, there is no way you can defeat Dotou!"Naruto had had enough of the crap spouting from this woman's mouth, his hand slamming against the table as he stood.

"Don't say the words 'give up' that easily," the blond hokage said intensely, not needing to shout for his words to be heard, to make an impact. "That old man is risking his life to bring peace back to Snow Country. If you dare mock him, I'll never forgive you." The words were as cold and sharp as steel and deeply worried the rest of his team. The whole point of this mission was to protect Koyuki, if their hokage decided she was unworthy, he had the authority to leave her to rot and as much as they were starting to warm to the idea because of this woman's attitude, she was the only hope Snow Country had. Sasuke was worried too though he knew Naruto wouldn't destroy Snow Country's only hope of peace, he was just worried that Naruto would do more damage to the princess than the enemies would by the end of the mission.

"Naruto-dono..." Sandayuu muttered gratefully. Koyuki only scowled and glared at the whiskered blond.

"Because you wouldn't give up, you'll be able to see a dream." Everyone's attention turned to the director, the tension in the room breaking. "Because you're able to see a dream, the future will come. This is nice. What a perfect theme for the final chapter of The Unlucky Princess."

"D-director...don't tell me that you are going to continue filming..." the screen writer said in disbelief. The director only smiled at the young man.

"I told you that this movie is changing..."

"No way!" The screen writer shouted.

"Think about it. Using a real princess and making it a movie. It's something that happens once in a lifetime."

"Oh, I see. it's going to be a great success and we can film the movie and earn big bucks. if we do this, it's going to be a real hit!" Naruto and the other's sweat-dropped at the interchange of conversation between the director and screen writer.

"Wait a second!" Koyuki tried to interrupt, but the director ignored her, obviously good at it.

"Unfortunately, there is only one option left." Kakashi said, getting in on the conversation. "There isn't a place where you can hide now that Dotou has discovered you. To fight is the only way for you to live."

"Kakashi-sensei," Hinata said softly with respect.

"Then that means the mission will continue," Sai said casually staring at Naruto to see if he would agree. Naruto saw his team's stares and just smiled in defeat, raising his hands as he shrugged.

"I suppose it does. Princess Fuun will go on to Snow Country and defeat the evil commander! That sounds like movie material right?" Naruto said with a goofy grin.

"Don't kid around!" Koyuki shouted angrily. "Reality is different from the movies. There is no such thing as a happy ending anywhere in this world!"

"If you put in the effort, you will be able to pull through!" The director retaliated in a stern voice. Koyuki actually looked a little taken by surprise.

"For such a mission, we _should _return to the village and get more people." Sasuke frowned at the suggestion, Naruto not that happy with it either since it meant more ninja trying to protect him as much as Koyuki and keep him from fighting.

"That would be a waste of time. We're more than enough for this mission," Sasuke said, not even bothering to look at Kakashi, or even open his eyes.

"You all..." Sandayuu managed to choke out.

"So it's decided." The director said. "The filming will continue!' He said resolutely.

"Let's make it a movie with a happy ending!" The screen writer added enthusiastically.

"Yeah." Naruto agreed, his mood improved, some of his more hyperactive self resurfacing...just a smidgen.

* * *

Naruto, Yamato, Kakashi stood with Sandayuu, staring at the mouth of a large, dark cavern entrance, their transportation stopped for a short while.

"At the other side of this large cave, there is a village where our comrades are gathered. After we finish filming here, we are planning to make a formal visit. Everyone is waiting for the princess' arrival, more than you can possibly know."

"Won't they be disappointed then..." Naruto whispered to himself, thinking of how Koyuki would act.

* * *

The blond frowned in his seat as he looked outside the window, having a bad feeling about this tunnel. "You can't see the exit," he commented softly.

"Long ago, this place used to be a railway." Naruto tilted his head in confusion at the word, Hinata voicing out his own question.

"Railway?"

"Right now, it's covered by ice, but really the tracks are underneath. They stopped again and exit their transport as soon as they reached the outside.

"Alright! We'll start the filming!" The director shouted, holding his trusty red shouting cone. The screen writer burst out of a different vehicle.

"D-director! Big problem!" He shouted as he ran over the the older man.

"What's the problem this time?" He asked with a frown.

"Yukie ran away again!"

"What?!" The director exclaimed.

* * *

"We'll split up to search for her. If you find her, make contact by radio!" Kakashi ordered.

"Understood," the rest of team seven said in unison. splitting up quickly and disappearing in different directions.

* * *

Naruto frowned when he found her slightly beaten up and unconscious on the forest floor. "Honestly, how many times do you have to run away before you're satisfied?" He asked her, seeing that she was waking up. She picked herself up slowly. "Everyone is waiting."

* * *

The blond hokage was walking through the tunnels with the princess on his back. The trip was silent thus far, but Koyuki quickly changed that.

"Why is it always you who finds me?" She asked softly.

"Because it's my mission," Naruto replied simply. "Even if you don't like it, I will chase you wherever you go. I just know...by your smell." Koyuki was silent at that answer.

_**Whoa, look at you go Casanova. I thought you weren't interested in relationships right now.**_Naruto's brow twitched in irritation.

_I'm not! And even if I were, I wouldn't exactly be going for a selfish, bitter, suicidal princess! _

_**No need to get your panties in a bunch,**_Kurama snickered.

_I swear to Kami, Kurama- _Koyuki interrupted his thoughts.

"Go back. I will just act in front of the camera. I'm not going to do anything else." Naruto didn't pause, only giving a single humorless chuckle. The sound of a whistle erupted in the silence of the cave, completely drowning out his soft footsteps. Naruto stiffened and turned around, not knowing where the source of the sound was coming from. His eyes widened as he looked at the ground and saw iron tracks appearing on the ground, wooden planks coming next. Blue eyes sharpened on the material.

"Chakra..." he muttered to himself. "The small amount of chakra flowing through the rail is melting the ice." When Naruto turned back to where they had come from and saw an oncoming light rounding the bend, he knew nothing good would come of it.

"T-train." Koyuki said. Naruto's brows furrowed.

"Train? What's a train?" Though Naruto was afraid his question would be answered soon. The whiskered blond's eyes narrowed at the giant metal contraption that was moving towards them at fatal speed if he stood still. "Ah...okay, that thing!" He turned around and started to literally run for his life...and Koyuki's.

"We'll be run over!" Koyuki shouted. Way to stay positive.

"We will not!" Naruto shouted firmly back.

"It's impossible!" Naruto growled at that, absolutely loathing those words.

"I will not give up!"

"it's definitely impossible!" She insisted angrily. Naruto turned to glare at her with red eyes, his whiskers slightly thicker and his tone more feral.

"Shut up and be quiet!" He yelled.

"Even if you do this, it's pointless! It's over!" The blond wasn't even surprised when she didn't listen.

"I will not let it end! I will never give up! If you say that you're going to give up, I'll try harder and never give up!" Naruto grit his teeth and growled, channeling chakra carefully into his calves and feet, being careful not to go at a speed too fast for the woman, leaving the train behind and reaching the light at the end of the tunnel in what must have seemed a flash to the princess.

Naruto gave a cocky grin and laughed at Koyuki's expression when he dropped her in the snow, the train rocketing past on the tracks only to quickly screech to a halt. Naruto's laughter stopped abruptly when a voice boomed over from the train.

"It's been a while, Koyuki." Her eyes widened slightly, her brows knit together in worry.

"Kazahana Dotou." Naruto looked to the train to see a man in fancy robes with a device in his hands looking in their direction, the snow ninja Roga at his side.

"So it's been ten years? Now, let me see your face." Naruto frowned at the creepy words and stepped between the two, blocking the man's sight of her. The man's frown deepened at that before both were distracted by the sound and sight of logs crashing into the side of one part of the train. Naruto and Koyuki turned up to see men in armor holding spears standing along the edges of the steep cliff, Sandayuu in the center of them.

"Everyone! Our princess Koyuki is watching!Victory will be ours!"

"Yeah!" They all shouted, their fists raised in the air. Naruto looked at the makeshift little army in worry.

"What?"

"Sandayuu?" Koyuki questioned. Sandayuu unsheathed his blade and held it in the air.

"Kazahana Dotou! Do you know how long we have waited for this day? I am Asabasan Sandayuu, a representative of the 50th Brigade. Now, we will avenge the death Of Kazahana Sousetsu-sama from a decade ago and we will take it out on you!" The other men cheered in agreement, but Dotou seemed entirely unfazed.

"Humph, there are still people like that around?" He questioned lazily.

"My deepest apologies. I will go now and deal with them." Dotou only smiled.

"No. They need to experience something that is absolutely hopeless." The men at the top of the cliff charged, descending from their high perch to attack the train. Koyuki watching in horror as the different train segments opened up to reveal brow after row of endless automatic kunai launchers and slaughtered the army of men that continued to charge, the snow becoming crimson red with their blood and littered with bodies and weapons.

Dotou's only response to the slaughter was a cruel smile.

* * *

**AN: **I'm sorry for not writing in a very long time. The internet box at my house officially died just a few days after my last post and since my family was in the process of looking for a new house to move into, we decided to wait until we moved to get a better internet plan. Of course even after we found a house, my father's reluctance to move has made it so that we haven't moved until my mother put her foot down and said we were going to move in officially tomorrow. Everything's packed and moved over there, all that's left is the beds and stuff. The internet should be set up on either Wednesday or Thursday and it'll take a few days to unpack, but otherwise after that I should be able to write a little more frequently as long as life doesn't get in the way too much. I hope the chapter wasn't too horrible. It's just a lot of canon with barely any differences, but there should be a few changes happening in the next chapter...probably...yeah. As always, please feel free to r&r, they're always appreciated and definitely help motivate me to keep writing. Sorry again for the long unexpected break though. I'll try to update more often...(TT^TT)


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